


(you seem to be) a kite without strings

by spearbi



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: 80s AU, M/M, Slow Burn, Slow!!! Burn!!!, Witchcraft, a variety of strange magical creatures, angsty mullet boy hwang hyunjin, bad scottish slang i Don’t Know, here to feed seungjin nation, knowledge of the 80s is not needed for consumption of this work, magic!!!!!!, smoochin.
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-08-29 01:38:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 38,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16734588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spearbi/pseuds/spearbi
Summary: It's during the summer of 1987 when Hyunjin is shuttled away from the drama of his parents' rocky relationship to spend his final summer break out west with his reclusive aunt in the town of Penn, Oregon, where time stretches as long and sweet as saltwater taffy.There's something a little strange about Penn. Maybe it's something in the water, or something woven deep into the foundation of the town itself, but Hyunjin is determined to find out exactly what is going on before summer ends.





	1. barefoot and careless

**Author's Note:**

> hey. im rly excited about this fic- 6 chapters, 36k words total. i love seungjin sooo much and i hope this serves them justice.
> 
> fic title is from "kites" by amber run- i think it ties down the vibe and the mood of the fic pretty well!!! 
> 
> buckle up n lemme know what you think!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey. im really excited about this fic! 36k of summery seungjin 80s good shit! buckle up!

If he closes one eye and squints with the other, the weird water stain on the attic ceiling looks almost like a bird. It’s a bit of a stretch, but at looking for shapes and animals in ceiling stains keeps his brain from atrophying of boredom.

_“Welcome to the jungle we've got fun and games_

_We got everything you want honey, we know the names_

_We are the people that can find whatever you may need-,”_

_“If you got the money, honey,_ ” Hyunjin mouths along, tapping his fingers against his thighs, _“We got your disease!”_ He’s sprawled out over his faded plaid quilt, eyes following cracks in the low attic ceiling as Axel Rose continues to wail through the tinny headphones of his Walkman. 

The music, despite being turned up as loud as the device allows, still fails to drown out the yelling of his parents. He can only hear snippets and pieces of phrases, but they’re ones that Hyunjin knows by heart- after years of fighting, the Hwang couple are the same as they always are: a duo of broken, repeating cassette tapes. 

_Just get divorced, already._

Hyunjin groans and sits up as something shatters downstairs (presumably against the kitchen wall ). This wasn’t how he wanted to spend his summer break, but it always ends up something like this: 

Hyunjin locks himself in his room with a stack of cassettes and a pack of smokes, doing his best to drown out his parents. Most days, he tries to hang out with his school pals- Jeongin, Woojin, and Minho- but he can’t go to their houses all the time, his mother says, because their parents might start to think that something is _wrong_ with the Hwangs. 

_Well_ , Hyunjin muses, pulling open his bedroom door slowly, _there is something wrong with my parents. They act like they want to fucking kill each other._ The Walkman lurches to a stop, letting him know that he needs to flip the tape, but he ignores it and jumps down the stairs, taking it two steps at a time. 

When he reaches the kitchen, he finds his mother crouching, sweeping what Hyunjin thinks must be another fine china plate off of the ground. His father is eerily absent; no doubt he’s off to blow off some steam through drinking, or maybe through banging one of the perky young associates from his law firm. 

“Hey, mom,” He says quietly, bending down to look his mother in the eye. “You okay?” 

She nods, her smile not quite reaching her eyes. Despite the immaculate outfit and perfect makeup, she looks tired, worn- like she’s a walking shell of the vibrant woman she used to be. “I’m fine, darling- your father and I just got into a- well, you know how it is.” She laughs, the sound strained and thin, like vegetable broth through a cheesecloth. 

Hyunjin watches her, and wonders yet again if things would have been different between them had he not been in the picture. He sighs. “You two should really just split up. Woojin’s uncle got divorced and nobody batted an eye.” 

His mother sniffs and stands, dusting off her hands on her dress. “That’s because Woojin’s uncle isn’t a high profile lawyer, and his wife isn’t a relationship therapist, _Hyunjin_. Can you imagine how badly a divorce would reflect on our careers?” 

The irony of their situation is not missed on Hyunjin, but he stopped feeling bad for them a long time ago. He bites back a witty retort and just rolls his eyes instead. 

Something sparkles on the ground- she’s missed a shard of china on the floor, and Hyunjin nudges at it with his socked foot. “Yeah, whatever, mom. I just really don’t wanna have to listen to you two screaming at each other all the time this summer.”

Her mouth thins out into a straight line, her shoulders tensing. “Actually,” She chirps, fingers fluttering along the hem of her dress, and Hyunjin knows right then and there that she’s going to drop a bomb on him. “Your father and I were discussing that earlier, you know. It would be good for you to go away this summer- it’s simply not healthy for you to be cooped up in that attic all the time.” 

“You are not sending me to summer camp, Jesus Christ!” 

“Don’t use that language with me, mister- and no, not summer camp. Do you remember Aunt Leehwa? She used to come over for holidays before- before that incident with my father. She lives over on the west coast in Oregon, and she’s offered to take you in for the summer. I think you’d really love it there, darling- there’s some beautiful wildlife to photograph.” 

_So, you’re sending me away to my estranged aunt like some unwanted plaything,_ Hyunjin thinks bitterly, picking irritably at a fresh mosquito bite on his elbow. Still, it’s Oregon, and anything is better than a summer spent in this shithole, so Hyunjin barely hesitates before speaking. “Fine. When do I leave?” 

His mother blinks, clearly taken aback by the quick answer. _Were you really expecting a fight?_

“Leehwa says you can come by whenever- so really, it’s up to you, I suppose.” 

“Tomorrow, then,” Hyunjin decides, “I’ll go tomorrow.” With the amount of money and questionable connections his father has, he’ll be flying first class tomorrow, no matter how short of notice. 

He flips his cassette over before slipping his headphones back on, effectively cutting off the conversation there. _Well I'm a west coast struttin'/ one bad mother,_ Axel shrieks, and Hyunjin grins. _Maybe this summer won’t be too awful, after all._

_“Got a rattlesnake suitcase_

_Under my arm_

_Been drinkin' gasoline_

_And honey you can make my motor hum!"_

The next morning dawns bright and clear, the birds just beginning to chirp in the bushes outside the veranda where Hyunjin sits, suitcase beside him. His camera bag is cradled carefully in his lap: inside it, a Nikon FA, well loved, and as many rolls of film as he can fit. 

He wrinkles his nose at how his thighs are seemingly glued to the porch with sweat already- southeastern Pennsylvania has the nastiest summers, all heavy wet air and buzzing horseflies. 

Both of his parents are already at work. The only indication that they remembered that their son was leaving for the entire summer at all was a sticky note slapped to the fridge, reminding Hyunjin that their driver would be picking him up to take him to the airport at 8:30 sharp. It doesn’t bother him anymore. He’s used to being the invisible son, only brought back to life as a weapon during arguments about child support and money. 

Gravel crunches under wheels, and Hyunjin looks up as a chrome plated black Honda rolls up to the house. “Mornin’, Mister Hyunjin!” 

Hyunjin smiles back at the elderly driver. “Hi, Aaron.” The chauffeur has been working for his family for as long as Hyunjin can remember. Sometimes, Aaron feels more like a parent than his real ones do. The inside of the car smells as it always does- like cinnamon and grease and very faintly of cigarette smoke.

Aaron wastes no time in placing his luggage in the trunk and pulling out onto the main road, and Hyunjin leans back against the cool leather seats with a heavy sigh. Aaron looks at him through the drivers window. “Everything alright, Mister Hyunjin?” 

Hyunjin blows a piece of his bangs out of his eye. “I’ve told you a million times, Aaron- please call me Hyunjin. Just Hyunjin. It feels weird otherwise.” He hesitates. “And I’m fine- just- just tired, is all.” 

Aaron hums thoughtfully, his gaze fixed onto the shimmering highway of cars, their carapaces twinkling in the sun’s glare. “You know, it might not be my place to say this, but your parents do love you very much in their own way, I think. It’s just a difficult situation- one that I’ve seen many times in my career, unfortunately.” 

_I wish I could believe you_ , Hyunjin thinks, fiddling with the strap of his camera bag, _but I don’t_. “Yeah,” He murmurs instead, eyes staring out the passenger window, and the remainder of the ride to the airport passes in silence. 

Aaron hands him his bags and hugs him briefly and tightly at the departure gate, patting his shoulder gently, and it makes Hyunjin’s eyes threaten to tear up for some reason. A stewardess guides him to his seat, all fluttering eyelashes and borderline flirtatious comments, and Hyunjin has to bite back an acerbic comment. _I’m eighteen, you cougar._

He knows that he’s handsome, knows that he looks a bit older than he actually is- puberty hit him like a truck – but it’s still incredibly embarrassing and uncomfortable to have women at least ten years his senior make advances on him. At least the first class accommodations on this plane are actually first class- besides that stewardess, of course. 

The plane takes off with a thundering roar, and as Hyunjin watches Pennsylvania shrink and warp beneath him, he wonders what his aunt is like. He doesn’t really remember her- family fights long before he was born made it so that he doesn’t even know what she looks like. 

Hopefully she isn’t some weirdo living in a cabin in the woods with fifteen cats and a taste for human flesh. _That would still be nicer than home_ , Hyunjin admits to himself, and clutches his camera bag just a little bit tighter. He has four hours to burn, and he’s sleepier than he’d like to admit, so he decides to nap a bit. The rocking of the plane and the rumble of the jet engines lulls him into a light slumber, and for the first time in a very long while, Hyunjin allows himself to be excited for summer. 

He dreams of half formed, ethereal things- silk on water, the light brush of something soft against the slope of his nose. _You’re finally coming home_ , somebody says, their voice reverberating outwards like ripples on a lake. _I’m so happy!_ The smell of crushed grass and cherry wine fills Hyunjin’s head, heavy and intoxicating. 

Fingers trembling, he reaches out into the darkness, searching, feeling for somebody he knows is important. Electricity arcs up his arm just as his fingertips brush smooth skin, shocking him back into reality. 

He awakens with a gasp to find a steward leaning over him, a concerned look on his lined face. 

“Sir, are you okay?” 

“Y-yes.” Hyunjin takes several deep breaths, trying to ignore the strange looks coming from other passengers. “I’m fine.” That sweet, heady scent lingers briefly before fading back into Hyunjin’s subconscious. The steward nods, gaze lingering. “Please fasten your seatbelt, then- we’ll be landing within the next twenty minutes.” 

Hyunjin complies, and settles against the small window to peer down at the Pacific Northwest. His first impression is that it looks cold, nothing like the sweltering, sticky summers he’s used to. Fog and grey wispy clouds obscure his vision, but as the pressure in his eardrums build, greens and oranges and reds congeal into a blur of color so pretty that Hyunjin forgets how to breathe for just a moment. 

It’s wild; he can tell- the forest overwhelms the little airport the plane circles, vast and endless and rolling with low clouds and mountain ranges. _I wonder what the air smells like._ A little thrill of excitement bubbles up in his chest, and he clutches his camera bag just a little bit tighter as the front wheels of the plane kiss the runway. 

It creeps through the ramp connecting the plane to the airport, sliding through the cracks in the gently undulating walls, and Hyunjin sucks in deep breaths of crisp, sharp air, feeling for maybe the first time ever that he’s finally home. 

In contrast, the airport is stuffy and quiet- as quiet as airports can be at three in the afternoon, anyways. Hyunjin shifts the strap of his camera bag and lets go of his carry-on suitcase to wipe his sweaty palms on his jeans. He feels a little nervous now- he’s never seen Leehwa in person- only a grainy, film photograph that was at least thirty years outdated. 

Throat tight, he scans the airport, looking for a woman he does not know. 

“Hyunjin?” He turns, and there she is. Song Leehwa looks almost exactly as he had imagined; which surprises him- short, dressed in loose, colourful clothing, and silvering hair hanging almost down to her hips. “Hi,” He says, a little awkward, and Leehwa laughs from her belly before stepping forward to give him a bone crushing hug. The height difference makes it so her face is smushed into his chest, and Hyunjin can’t help but laugh a little as she squeezes tight. She smells a little like cinnamon and sawdust, and it’s strangely comforting. 

“Goddamn,” Leehwa says, eyes crinkling into crescents, “Look at how big you’ve gotten! The last photo your mother sent of you was, I don’t know, ten years ago? Wow!” She has to go on her tiptoes to ruffle Hyunjin’s hair, and Hyunjin can’t help but grin in response. “You’re almost exactly as I imagined.” 

Leehwa grabs control of his carry on, eyebrow quirked. “Oh, almost?” 

“You’re shorter that I thought you’d be,” Hyunjin confesses, and Leehwa cackles, her silver hair rippling around her shoulders. People stare at her with interest and something a little bit like awe as she passes, and Hyunjin has to bite back a little giggle as people part wordlessly for her. 

“Afternoon, Mrs. Song,” an elderly man says, tipping his hat, and Leehwa shoots him a wink as she struts by, Hyunjin trailing behind her like a baby duck. “Hello, Marcus,” She says over her shoulder, “This is my nephew, Hyunjin.” 

“Well, Hyunjin,” Marcus calls out, waving, “You’re sure in for a treat! Leehwa’s a right angel, she is.” 

Hyunjin nods, cheeks reddening under all the attention, and hurries to catch up to his aunt. 

The air is better, much better than he thought it’d be, and Hyunjin can’t stop sucking in great lungful’s of it. 

“Good, right?” Leehwa says, slamming the trunk of her truck with gusto. “The air here is beautiful. This whole place is a little slice of heaven.” 

“I can believe it,” Hyunjin murmurs, sliding into the passenger seat. “It’s so much nicer than Pennsylvania.” The interior of the truck smells like very faintly of cigarette smoke, and very strongly of pine. It’s clearly old but well taken care of, and a hawk feather dangles from the driver’s mirror. 

Leehwa hums as she backs out of the parking stall, fingers tapping the stick shift absentmindedly. “Me too. It’s just too hot there- too many people. There’s more trees than people up here in Penn.” 

“That’s nice, though.” 

“Yeah, it is. I think you’ll like it here,” Leehwa says, cracking the windows a little as they turn onto a long, empty highway. “Lots of nature. You still like taking photos?” Hyunjin grins shyly and pulls out his camera, wiggling it a little. “Yeah. Upgraded from that shitty Polaroid, though.” 

Leehwa whistles through her teeth, low and impressed. “That’s very pretty. And expensive looking. I’m glad you still like that, kiddo, because the amount of wildlife around my cabin will rock your socks off.”

Hyunjin leans against the scratchy headrest. “Thank god.” _I have reached Nirvana._

They drive in surprisingly comfortable silence for a while, with Leehwa mouthing the words to a fuzzy folk song and Hyunjin watching the trees whip by in a green and yellow blur. “So,” Leehwa says cautiously, “How are your parents doing?” 

Hyunjin shrugs, the textbook definition of nonchalance. “Ripping each other’s heads off, as per usual. Sometimes I wish they’d just rip the Band-Aid off, you know? Just get divorced. They’re making everyone’s life a living hell.” 

“Jesus.” 

“I know. It’s whatever. I don’t really care anymore- I’m just glad to be out of that house for this summer, at least.” 

Leehwa nods, frown lines deepening. “I’m sorry, kiddo. I’d have asked you to come over here sooner, but your parents aren’t- they’re not exactly the most forgiving.” 

Hyunjin leans in, intrigued. “What happened that made them so mad at you?” Leehwa laughs and flicks at his forehead. “Now that’s a story for later. Let’s get you all settled in here first, yeah?”

Hyunjin nods. He can wait. 

When Leehwa said cottage, Hyunjin had envisioned a rustic log building with a big herb garden and like, pigeons everywhere. He’s right about the herb garden at least- it’s massive and sprawling and gorgeous, even in the grey light. The cottage itself, however, is a mix of modern and rustic, with stone and wooden walls and tall glass windows. A shiny barbecue sits on the front porch next to a bench, and there are fairy lights dotting the dirt driveway.

“Are you going to stare at it for a little while longer, or do you want to actually come inside?” 

Hyunjin snaps himself out of his reverie and grins sheepishly over at his aunt. “Yeah, yeah- you just have a really nice place.”

Leehwa pops the trunk of the car and drags Hyunjin’s suitcase and backpack out. “Thanks. You were probably expecting some shitty little log cabin covered in bird shit, right?” 

“No!” The smirk Leehwa gives him tells him that she doesn’t believe him whatsoever, so Hyunjin accepts his fate and slides out of the truck. Leehwa hums quietly as she fumbles with the keys to the front door, and Hyunjin takes the moment to thank whatever entity out there that Leehwa wasn’t anything like his mother. Leehwa pushes open the door and kicks off her shoes in one smooth motion. “Hey, you aren’t allergic to cats or anything, right?” 

“Nah. You have one?” 

“Three, actually. They’re skittish, feral things, but they’re all sweethearts.” Leehwa clicks her tongue, and three small objects streak towards them. “Hey, cuties,” Leehwa coos, reaching down to scratch a fat tabby behind the ear. “This one is JYP. He’s a loveable bastard. This one-,” she gives a thin orange cat belly rub, “is YG. He’s evil but will love you if you give him food.” She stands, brushing cat fur off of her flowy pants. “As for SM- oh, he’s gone already. I’m sure you’ll meet him eventually. He’s a little bitch.” 

Hyunjin crouches down and gives JYP a little pat on the head, and the cat purrs, weaving around his ankles. “Why do they have such odd names?” 

“Well,” Leehwa says seriously, gazing off into the distance, “They’re actually men I cursed into cats. Couldn’t stop fighting over me, so I figured they’d be better as felines.” 

She peeks over at Hyunjin, eyes sparkling with mirth. “Just kidding. One of the local kids named them, and I didn’t have the heart to change the names. They just stuck.” 

“I like the cursed men one better,” Hyunjin says, and Leehwa nods. “Me too. Anyways, let’s get you all unpacked, yeah? I gave you the room with the best view. Overlooks the whole forest.” 

“Cool,” Hyunjin breathes, and runs ahead of Leehwa, taking the polished oak staircase two steps at a time. YG meows, butting his head against Leehwa’s calf. “I know, bud,” Leehwa muses, dragging Hyunjin’s suitcase up the stairs, “I think he’s pretty awesome too.” 

The room Hyunjin is given is vastly different from the one back home. It’s open and brightly lit by two lamps, throwing light over a double bed covered in quilts. The walls are wood, and little pictures hang dot them sporadically. At the far wall, directly across from the door, is a massive circular window. Hyunjin walks over to it, socks sinking into the woven rug. The view is gorgeous. From here, Hyunjin can see the forest, rolling endlessly in front of him like the ocean. To his right are a cluster of flickering yellow lights, and with a start Hyunjin realizes that that must be the town. 

“Pretty far out from town, right? At night, you can see the milky way like it’s five feet above you.” 

“That’s _sick,_ , Hyunjin crows, nose pressed against the glass, and Leehwa is so deeply glad to see him happy. 

“I’m gonna go prep dinner; let me know if you need anything, okay? The shower is just down the hall to the right.” 

Hyunjin nods, and Leehwa ambles back down the stairs, the two cats following like a posse behind her. With a sigh, Hyunjin flops back onto the springy bed, arms splayed out. A low hiss startles him into a sitting position. “Hello?” He calls out, feeling a little freaked out. 

Another hiss. Hyunjin looks over the side of his bed to see a little black paw sticking out from under the quilt. “Oh, hey,” Hyunjin says softly. “You must be SM.” As if responding to his name, a little black cat creeps out from underneath the bed and looks up at him with narrowed yellow eyes. 

Hyunjin pats the comforter beside him beseechingly, and SM gives a very human scoff before stalking out the door, tail high in the air. Hyunjin can’t help but feel a little rejected. After checking under the bed to make sure there are no more unwanted guests lurking there, he unpacks his things. 

There really isn’t much to take out of his suitcase- some clothes, some books, a sketchbook with some pens, a thick roll of money that Hyunjin had snatched off of the kitchen table before he’d left, and his camera bag. He’s settled in and a little bored already, and the house is open and inviting, so he meanders out into the hallway. The second room is empty save for a small bed and a dresser, so Hyunjin doesn’t bother snooping around in there, but the third is packed wall to wall and ceiling to ceiling with books, so he steps inside. 

The musty smell of aging paper fills his head, and he allows his hands to trail over the dusty spines of books that seemed much older than himself. 

Hyunjin has loved reading ever since he was a child, mostly through an overwhelming need to escape into a fictional world where his parents weren’t always fighting, but he loves literature all the same. 

_This must be Leehwas study- or library._

At the center of the room is a mahogany desk, a dull, smooth red in the grey light filtering in from the window behind it. Hyunjin steps over to it, peering at the open books and scattered papers. A notebook lies open on the table, covered in barely decipherable handwriting and detailed ink drawings. It’s about birds- _their wings_ , Hyunjin notes, tracing a finger over a careful drawing of a falcon feather. _She must have a bird watching hobby, or something._

A quickly scribbled note underneath the drawing of the feather catches his eye, and Hyunjin leans down, squinting. 

**Almost ran into each other today. Doesn’t seem very hostile.**

Hyunjin tilts his head, confused, but Leehwa yells “Dinner!” up at him and he runs out of the room, guilt and a strange feeling he can’t quite name writhing around in his stomach. 

Dinner itself is a lively affair- the cats keep popping up from under the table to snap up bits of chicken, and Leehwa maybe drinks one glass of wine too many and thinks it would be a good idea to break out her rusty mandolin skills- and Hyunjin loves it. But. He keeps thinking about that room, with all its bird books. And that notebook. He doesn’t know exactly why he’s so drawn to it, but his fingers buzz and his brain itches with the urge to know more. 

_I have all summer _, he thinks, a small smile growing behind the rim of his water glass. _I have all summer to explore.___

__Leehwa is in the middle of a very passionate cover of the latest Cyndi Lauper song when the phone rings, dragging her out of her musical trance. “But girls just wanna have _fun_ ,” Leehwa sing-whines, stomping over to the phone and yanking it out of it’s cradle. “Hello?” Hyunjin watches her face turn stony. She holds the phone out. “It’s your father, kiddo.” _ _

__Hyunjin makes a face, and she chuckles drily as she passes the corded phone over to him. “You left your room an absolute mess,” his father says as way of greeting, “So we’re going to have to talk about that when you come back.”_ _

__“I doubt you’re going to remember that in two months, dad. You barely remember your own name, most of the time. Downsides of being too busy for your family and drowning yourself in infidelity, I guess.” Across the staticky line, his father draws in a sharp breath, and Leehwa covers her face with her hands._ _

__“Don’t talk to me that way, boy.” His father’s voice is dark and low, and despite having heard it countless times, Hyunjin still gets a little thrill of fear at how angry his father can get. It’s stupid to bait his asshole of a father, he knows it- but nobody else challenges him, so it looks like the job is up to him._ _

__“Whatever. What do you want?”_ _

__“Your mother and I expect you to phone every day. If we aren’t there to pick up, Aaron will be, and he’ll take notes for us. Also, don’t listen to your aunt too much. She’ll fill your head with nonsense and dandelion down.”_ _

__Hyunjin sucks on the inside of his cheek and twirls the phone cord around his finger. “Okay, sure. And what’s your damage with Aunt Leehwa?”_ _

__A brief pause. “That’s none of your business.”_ _

__Hyunjin smirks. “Then don’t tell me how or how not to interact with her. Give mom a kiss for me, will you?” He hangs up before his father can reply, and pulls the cord out of the wall for good measure. Leehwa is staring at him, looking incredibly amused. “So,” Hyunjin says, settling back in his chair, “Where were you? Oh yeah, _Girls Just Wanna Have Fun_.” _ _

__Leehwa wastes no time in resuming her act, eventually tossing the mandolin aside to grab a chicken drumstick to use as a mic. JYP leaps onto the table, his fat little legs kicking peas and gravy everywhere in his haste to gobble up little bits of meat. YG leaps up into Hyunjin’s lap and begins to frantically lick spots of gravy off of his chin and nose. It’s chaos, and Hyunjin hasn’t laughed so hard in a long time._ _

____

_"The phone rings in the middle of the night_

_My father yells what you gonna do with your life_

_Oh daddy dear you know you're still number one_

_But girls they wanna have fun_

_Oh girls just want to have fun!"_

***  
When he wakes up the next morning, he momentarily forgets where he is, and panic blooms softly inside his chest. And then SM leaps off of his chest, snarling quietly, and its then that Hyunjin realizes where he is. 

“G’morning to you too,” He mutters, casting a baleful look in the black cat’s direction before sliding out of bed to peek out the window. It’s early- the sun is casting watery beams of gold light over the treetops, making it look as though they’ve been dipped in gold. It's a photographer’s paradise. 

_I’m glad I brought so many rolls of film with me, because I’m definitely going to be using it._

Hyunjin slides on pants and a pair of socks before turning to SM. “I’m going outside to go take some pictures. You wanna come?”

The black cat sticks his nose up in the air, but follows Hyunjin down the stairs anyways. The cottage is quiet and dark, the only source of light coming through the big windows. He pulls his sneaker on as quietly as he can in the semi darkness, yelping quietly as SM clambers over his legs to claw at the front door. 

Hyunjin struggles with the door for much longer than he’d like to admit before he finds a deadbolt preventing it from opening. SM lets out a noise that sounds suspiciously like a snicker, and Hyunjin shoots the cat his best Annoyed Look as he finally gets the door open and steps outside. 

It’s a little cooler than he’s used to, and Hyunjin can’t help but shiver slightly as the forest looms over him. He feels so small next to the giant, slumbering redwoods encircling the house, and he sets up his camera before taking his first shot. His finger presses down on the shutter, immortalizing the moment onto film base and gelatin emulsion. 

He takes a couple more shots from the porch before stopping. “You think that I’d get in trouble if I went in there?” SM yowls, and Hyunjin doesn’t need to speak Cat to know what he’s saying. _Yes, fuckwit!_

“Well,” Hyunjin says firmly, “Maybe if you come with me I won’t get like, eaten by a grizzly bear or something.” He stands up, steels his resolve, and marches toward the treeline, heart beating fast with a mixture of apprehension and excitement. SM gives an exasperated yowl behind him before trotting up to nip passive aggressively at his shoelaces. 

“I’ve never seen such a big forest before,” Hyunjin whispers to the cat, eyes wide as he steps underneath the canopy of redwood and pine trees. “It almost feels alive.” The cat just trots ahead of him on the moss covered forest floor, tail whipping back and forth. 

Hyunjin stops frequently to take a picture of every lovely and strange thing he finds: a monarch butterfly emerging from it’s cocoon, two young deer grazing on a patch of clover, an army of carpenter ants triumphantly carrying a snake carcass back to their anthill. 

He’s not entirely sure how much time passes, but at some point he looks up at the sun is significantly higher in the sky than Hyunjin remembered. 

“Oh, shit!” He spins wildly, looking for the cottage, but it’s trees and shrubbery in every direction. SM blinks up at him silently. “Do you know how to get back?” SM meows and sprawls out in a sunbeam, absolutely useless. 

“Fuck,” Hyunjin moans, stumbling backwards to sit on a log. “My second day here, and I get lost in a huge goddamn forest. Leehwa is going to kill me if the wild animals don’t get to me first!” He thrusts a fist in the air, shaking it at the mighty redwoods. “It’s all your fault!” He yells, glaring upwards. “It’s your fault that you’re all so damn pretty!” 

A distant giggle filters down from the canopy and Hyunjin freezes, mouth agape. “Is someone there?” 

Silence. 

SM pushes himself upright, ears swiveling back and forth. Hyunjin slowly lowers his fists. “Um,” He says loudly, “I’m like. Super lost? So if anyone was out there fucking with me, hypothetically, I mean, I’d really appreciate it if they could show me back to the cottage?” 

More silence. 

Hyunjin sighs. “Well, it was worth a shot-,” 

A pinecone falls directly at his feet, and Hyunjin screams so loudly that a small flock of roosting crows hurl themselves into the sky as far away from him as possible. 

“Oh my god,” Hyunjin wheezes, clutching his chest, “Okay. That was just a pinecone.” He stifles another scream as another pinecone falls, this time several feet away. SM purrs and trots towards it, sniffing it curiously. 

_This is so fucking weird_. Hyunjin stares at the pinecones, and then up at the forest canopy. And then at the pinecones again. He shrugs. _Whatever_. “Worth a shot, right?” SM just blinks up at him before scampering forward just as another pinecone drops a few meters ahead of them. 

Hyunjin sighs and begins to walk, following the trail of breadcrumbs like some weird fucking version of Hansel and Gretel. “I’d just like to put it out there that I really don’t taste very good. I’d probably make you sick, just in case you were. I dunno. Planning on eating me?” 

This time, Hyunjin is certain that he hears a soft giggle, light and melodic. 

“How are you doing that?” He calls out, picking up the pace as the pinecones drop faster. “Is this like, a sport? Or is this some weird, reclusive, ewok hermit shit?” As predicted, there’s no response, and Hyunjin throws his hands up in the air in exasperation. “Maybe I’m just nuts, then! Getting kicked out here by my parents was the final straw for my poor, sad brain. I’m a loser and a weirdo.” 

There’s a long pause, and then another pinecone drops. “Fine,” Hyunjin growls, trotting towards it. He pauses. Wedged carefully between the tines of the pinecone is a long, glossy falcon feather- a deep auburn, cherry color. It’s long, almost as long as his forearm, and something deep in his brain sparks at the sight of it. “Is this for me?” 

He takes the silence as a yes and carefully detaches it from the pinecone. A little shock of static pricks his fingers as he holds it, and Hyunjin winces. “Thanks,” He calls up, waving the feather around enthusiastically. 

A pinecone plonks sadly onto the dirt in front of him, and with a sigh, Hyunjin carefully puts the feather into his camera bag and resumes his walking. He almost can’t believe his eyes when he spots the herb garden from the thinning tree line. “Oh my god!” He exclaims, doing a little dance of joy right then and there. “I’m not gonna die! Thank you, tree hermit! Forest entity! Whatever you are!” 

He pauses. “If I come back, will I see you again?” Hyunjin waits so long for an answer that SM starts to make his way back to the cottage by himself, his arched tail the only part of him visible in the tall grass. 

Hyunjin flinches as several pinecones fall around him. 

“Okay,” Hyunjin says slowly, “I’ll just take that as a yes, then.” 

He waves up at the branches, and then lowers his hand, feeling a little stupid and childish. Letting out a long breath, he trudges into the tall grass, leaving the tree line behind him. The back of his neck prickles and burns, like he’s being watched, but when he turns around, there’s nobody there: only the steady, unchanging landscape, and the gentle trill of birdsong. 

Leehwa is waiting for him on the front porch in a loose dress, a smoldering cigarette held gracefully between her fingers. “Up early, I see?” She calls, and Hyunjin ducks his head, embarrassed. “Forest is beautiful at dawn,” Leehwa muses, tapping the butt of her cigarette, the ash falling onto a patch of weeds. “I hope you got some good photos. There’s a developing lab in town; I could take you there once you eat up enough film with that camera of yours.” 

Hyunjin brightens. “Yeah, that’d be amazing, actually. And I think I managed to get some really good photos!” He babbles to Leehwa about the deer, and the butterfly, and the snake carcass as she fixes the both of them a pot of coffee. 

“I hope you took one of the cats along with you, at least. There’s some wild, dangerous things lurking in those woods, kiddo; the last thing I want to see you do is getting hurt.” There’s an intensity in his aunt’s eyes; she’s dead serious. 

Hyunjin nods, throat tight. “I took SM.” 

Leehwa guffaws, the heaviness of the moment passing by as quickly as a summer storm. “SM? That little bastard? You’d be better off taking a feral dog with you. Or a four-year-old.” 

They both laugh as an indignant hiss echoes around the kitchen. “Your cats are really smart, Aunt Leehwa,” Hyunjin says slyly, leaning in. “Are you sure they’re not men you cursed into felinehood?” 

Leehwa whistles cheerfully, ripping open a packet of Pop-Tarts and shoving them into the spluttering toaster. “You’re a smart kid, Hyunjin. If you’re anything like I think you are, I’m sure you’ll figure it out.” 

_I think I will_ , Hyunjin thinks, fingers creeping under the flap to touch the falcon feather.  


_At the very least, this is bound to be the most interesting summer I’ve had in a very long time._


	2. i'll use you as a warning sign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We belong to the light, we belong to the thunder; we belong to the sound of the words we've both fallen under."- We Belong, Pat Benatar

It’s been a week since Hyunjin touched down in Penn with a suitcase, a camera, and a lot of emotional baggage. He’s spent his time wandering the forests surrounding the cottage, taking dozens and dozens of pictures. He’s excited to see how they’ll turn out. His Walkman collects dust from where it lies in his suitcase.

Hyunjin hasn’t gotten lost since that very first time he entered the forest, which is a good thing and a bad thing, because it means that he hasn’t talked to that strange thing in the trees again. 

( Not for lack of trying, though. )

And curiously enough, ever since that first time he set foot in Leehwa’s library, the door has been shut and locked, which makes Hyunjin pretty sure that she knew he’d been poking around in there.

He keeps the feather in his suitcase. He takes it out to look at it sometimes- it makes him a little sad for reasons he can’t quite understand. 

As the week goes by, his aunt teaches him little, strange things. Leehwa shows him which plants can cure a cough, and which ones can cause one. They go blackberry picking, and while Leewha can’t cook to save either of their lives, she can make a mean pie. They spend that night making dozens and dozens of blackberry pies, until Hyunjin’s fingertips are stained purple and blue and until the kitchen is filled with the heady scent of baking pie. 

Which is why Hyunjin is eating cold blackberry pie for breakfast. It’s better than the alternatives: Pop-Tarts and trail mix. “I’m going shopping today,” Leehwa mutters, tearing open a packet of Pop-Tarts viciously. “You can come along and get those photos developed, if you want.” 

Hyunjin nods tiredly as he pours himself a thick, black cup of coffee. 

“Before that, though,” Leehwa says, dumping a disgusting amount of sugar into her coffee and stirring it with a single wooden chopstick, “I’ve invited some of the town boys to come over today, to meet you. I think you’ll all get along very well.” 

Hyunjin sprays a mouthful of hot, black coffee all over the nice white tablecloth. “You _what?_ ” 

The doorbell rings, and both of them freeze. The Pop-Tarts spring up out of the toaster, smoking but mostly edible. “That’ll be them,” Leehwa chirps. “I’ll go bring them in now.” 

“No,” Hyunjin whines. “Let me go back to sleep, pleaaaase.” 

Leehwa just laughs and goes to open the door. Hyunjin only briefly hesitates before grabbing the sugar and pouring at least half of the jar into his cup. _I wish this was vodka,_ Hyunjin thinks sadly, downing the painfully sugary coffee in one go. _Maybe then I’d be less apprehensive._

“That was a little bit horrifying to watch,” An unfamiliar voice admits, and Hyunjin whirls around in his chair. A shorter, blonde haired teenager leans against the kitchen counter casually, eyebrow raised. He’s unfairly attractive. “I’m impressed, though. I thought Jisung had the biggest sweet tooth in town, but it looks like you take the cake.” 

Hyunjin looks over to where the blackberry pie sits and blushes. “Who’s Jisung?”

As if in response to his question, a slim, copper-haired kid skids around the doorframe to the kitchen, dressed casually in a thin t-shirt and a pair of cargo shorts. “That would be me! You gonna finish that pie?” Hyunjin blinks, following Jisung’s gaze to where his half-finished pie sits. 

“No, go ahead,” Hyunjin says, a little envious at how pretty the both of them are. 

“I’m Chan,” the blonde says, pushing away from the counter and sitting down next to Hyunjin. “I’m nineteen. Jisung is your age, I think. Leehwa knows us pretty well, so she set up this playdate for you.” 

“It’s not like I asked for it, you know.” 

Jisung laughs around a forkful of pie crust. “Oh, we know. Leehwa is an unstoppable force of nature. We wanted to meet you, actually; everyone wants to see what Leehwa’s nephew is like.” His almond eyes twinkle as he gives Hyunjin an exaggerated once over. “You have like, a super bomb face, dude. Weird mullet, though.” 

“My dad hates it,” Hyunjin explains, swirling the thick, coffee flavoured sludge around in his cup. 

Chan nods sagely, thick eyebrows furrowed. “I get you. Me and Jisung’s old man is a piece of work, too. So is Changbin’s.” 

“Changbin?”

Jisung sighs, waving Hyunjin’s fork in the direction of the front door. “He’s probably still there _flirting with Leehwa_ , right?” 

“Shut up, douche!” Someone yells back, voice reedy and a little nasal, and a giggle escapes from Hyunjin’s mouth before he can stop himself. Chan and Jisung both stare at him, starstruck. 

“Why can’t you be that cute?” Chan gripes, poking Jisung’s cheek. 

Jisung lets out a little huff. “I’ve been blessed with superior intellect and dashing good looks. I can’t have _everything_ \- otherwise it’d be unfair for everyone else.” Chan smiles, all dimples, and Hyunjin giggles. 

A third teenager ambles into the kitchen, hands shoved into the pockets of his black hoodie. He’s short as well, but the intimidating presence he gives off is enough to give him a couple extra inches of height.

“Hey,” he grunts in Hyunjin’s general direction, angular face tilted upwards. “I’m Changbin.” 

“Hi,” Hyunjin squeaks in response, only able to maintain eye contact for a few moments before dropping his gaze.

“He’s only this intimidating around new people,” Jisung says sympathetically, patting Hyunjin’s shoulder. “If it helps at all, he has Madonna posters covering like, every inch of his bedroom walls.” 

Changbin’s composure crumbles at this, and he whirls around to stare at Hyunjin with an embarrassed hiss, cheeks reddening. “You didn't hear that!” 

“Hear what?” Hyunjin asks innocently, and the three of them look at him for a long moment before bursting into laughter. 

Leehwa pokes her head into the kitchen. “You boys go easy on him, okay? Don’t stay out too late, either. And Hyunjin- if you’re back around four, we’ll go develop your photos.” 

“You take photos?” Jisung says, interested, at the same time Chan says “I think _he’ll_ need to go easy on _us_.” 

Hyunjin grins wide, pulls out his camera, and the rest is history. 

(He doesn’t end up going into town to develop his photos, but that’s okay. He has all summer.) 

The three boys decide to give him the unofficial official tour of the forest and surrounding area, pointing out strangely shaped trees and deadwood, and murmuring in low voices about the southern part of the woods that _nobody_ is allowed to go into. This piques Hyunjin’s interest, and he files that bit of information away for later. 

It’s about noon when Jisung leads Hyunjin down to a little hot spring tucked behind a thick outcrop of boulders. The sun is high in the sky, filtering down hot orange sunbeams onto the dappled forest floor. Birdsong fills the upper canopies, and bushes rustle in the distance. 

Chan plops down onto the edge of the spring and sticks his bare legs in, kicking them back and forth. “Changbin found it like, three years ago, because he ran into a spider web and rolled down the slop right into the spring. We showed Leehwa and she said it was fine to swim around in.” 

Hyunjin hums and reaches down to stick his hand into the water. It’s warm, bordering on hot- _like bathtub water_. It reeks of sulfur, the acidic scent of it enough to make his toes curl. Jisung hollers loudly as Changbin picks him up and throws him in with a loud splash. Hyunjin jumps as warm water splatters the front of his legs. A giggle burbles out of his mouth, unbidden. 

“I wouldn’t laugh so much if I were you,” Chan says conversationally, “Because you’re next.” 

Hyunjin pauses mid-laugh. “What?” 

Chan throws him in easily, and a sputtering Hyunjin resurfaces just in time to see Jisung and Chan tumble into the spring as well. 

The next few days pass like this, and Hyunjin can feel himself settling into this other life he’s found out in the middle of nowhere. He’s allowed to go over to the boys’ houses as often as he’d like, and Leehwa continues to teach him about the forest- how to tell where water is just by the direction moss grows on trees, that spiders build webs on the south side of trees, and that elderberries are not for human consumption. 

“What eats them, then?” He asks, leaning in to look at the cluster of shiny, purple berries. Leehwa shrugs, adjusting her sun hat. “Not humans.” 

And what is he supposed to think of _that_? 

SM follows him around when he’s not with Leehwa or the town boys, acting as his babysitter. The black cat has warmed up to him infinitesimally, no longer nipping at Hyunjin’s ankles or hissing at him when he moves to tentatively pat the small feline’s head- a small victory, but a victory nonetheless. 

Hyunjin wakes up one Friday morning to find said cat curled up next to him on his bed, tail tucked neatly beneath his chin. “Good morning,” Hyunjin whispers, and SM just cracks one large yellow eye open before going back to sleep. 

Sighing, Hyunjin slips out of bed, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes with one heavy hand. 

He’s not expecting to see Leehwa up this early, so he pauses at the foot of the stairs when he hears her speaking into the phone with someone. “-No,” She says hurriedly into the phone, shoulders tense, “I can’t guarantee anything. I’m doing my best to cover everything before tonight- No, that’s _not_ happening. Not yet.” She stops, scowling into the receiver. “ _Fine_. I’ll come into town. I need things for tonight, anyways. Bye.” She hangs up, grumbling under her breath. 

“Aunt Leehwa?” Hyunjin calls out softly, and grins when she jumps. “You scared me!” She chastises, shuffling over in her slippers to give him a little whack on the arm. Hyunjin follows her to the kitchen, stopping to pat YG on the nose. 

“Who was that?” Hyunjin asks, and Leehwa busies herself with looking through the cupboards before answering. 

“Just an old friend who wanted to say hello. You want to go develop those photos today?” 

“Sure,” Hyunjin nods, eyes narrowed. She’s been acting strangely the past couple of days- buying bulk purchases of salt, setting little lanterns on the windowsills and porch, and ordering Hyunjin to stay out of the woods, each day with a different excuse. First bear sightings, then reports of strange homeless people in the woods, and then an outbreak of _hogweed_ , of all things.

Leehwa rubs the back of her neck. “Look, Hyunjin, I really hate to do this to you, but I don’t want you going into the woods today or tonight, alright? There’s been multiple cougar sightings, and I don’t want you to become cat chow.” 

Hyunjin hums, unconvinced. “Okay, will do.” He leaves to go get dressed, and while he doesn’t look behind him, he can feel Leehwa’s gaze fixed on him, heavy and worried. _There’s something odd going on_ , Hyunjin thinks, slipping a long sleeved Scorpion shirt on, _I can feel it in the air_. It’s thick and heavy, and it reeks of brine and something very, very ancient.

He grabs his camera bag and film, and after a long moment of hesitating, he reaches under his bed and pulls out the suitcase. The feather is just as he’s left it- long, cherry red, and glossy. The buzzing in his bones subsides as he picks it up, and he barely pauses before gently moving it to his camera bag. _Just in case._ He’s always been a little superstitious- something his father had never let him forget, and something that his mother quietly feared. 

The ride into town is quick, with Hyunjin excitedly pointing out a herd of deer bounding across the highway in front of them, and Leehwa shouting along to Pat Benatar’s latest Top 40 single. Leehwa pulls the truck into a parking space in front of what seems to be a general store. There’s a lot of people out- many of them are older couples, but Hyunjin spots a couple kids his age wandering around.

“I just need to get some shopping done,” Leehwa yawns, “But the electronics store is just down the road there-,” She points at a tiny, sad looking building-, “And you can just tell them that the cost is on Leehwa’s tab.” 

Hyunjin nods. “Cool. Meet you back here?” 

“Sounds good, kiddo. Let me know if anyone gives you any trouble.” 

Why would they do that? Hyunjin thinks, stepping out of the truck and slamming the door shut behind him. He waits until Leehwa disappears into the general store before turning and making his way down the street. Calling it the town square is a reach; most of the buildings are boarded up, FOR LEASE signs plastering the interior of their windows. 

_Guess there isn’t much business around here._

Hyunjin pushes open the tacky metal door to the electronics store, starting a little as the door hits a little bell, causing everyone inside the shop to pause and look at him. Flushing under the curious stares, he scurries down the aisles of camera parts and Sony headphones to the front desk. A middle aged man is manning the desk; he’s familiar, but Hyunjin can’t quite put his finger on why. 

He clears his throat. “Excuse me? I’d like to get some photos developed.”

The man looks up from his paperback slowly, thick glasses sliding down the bridge of his large nose. “Hm? Oh, sure. You got the film?” 

Hyunjin nods and pulls the several boxed rolls of film out of his bag, sliding them across the counter to the balding man. His faded name-tag catches the fluorescent lights, and Hyunjin is able to make out the words: **MY NAME IS KEVIN!**

The older man shuffles over to the cash register and begins to resignedly punch the buttons. “Seven rolls? That’s going to be-,” Kevin coughs, eyes darting up briefly to map out Hyunjin’s face. “-Are you related to Leehwa Song, by any chance?” 

“Yeah, I’m her nephew,” Hyunjin says, a little weirded out. He kicks at the puke coloured carpet with the tip of his Converse. “Why?”

Kevin coughs again and backs away from the cash register. 

“Nothing. It’s on the house today- I owe Leehwa a favour.” 

“Okay, then. I’ll let her know that, I guess?” 

Kevin nods rapidly, sweat beading his forehead. “Yes, yes. I’ll go send these to the processing lab now- it should take a couple days at most. I’ll mail them up to the two of you when they’re done.” 

Hyunjin nods slowly, confused at how nervous and uncomfortable Kevin seems to be around him. “Have a good day,” Kevin says, clearly dismissing him, “And stay safe tonight.” 

Hyunjin waves a little and hightails it out of the stuffy store, desperate to escape the prying eyes and heady smell of glass cleaner. Kevin’s parting words reverberate around the inside of his skull, tickling the base of his spine. _And stay safe tonight._

What does that mean? Hyunjin gnaws on his lip as he walks back to the truck, both arms wrapped around his camera bag. And why was he acting so strangely around me? _There’s something not quite right here_. He freezes in place. Something is amiss; it curls around Hyunjin’s shoulders and whispers velvet into his ears, and he can’t help but shudder at the wrongness of it. 

“Stop overreacting.” He tells himself firmly, and walks forward, swallowing down his paranoia. 

Leehwa isn’t outside or near the truck, so Hyunjin makes his way inside the little general store. It’s cool and a little dry inside, and the interior is surprisingly modern compared to the exterior. Tinny music plays from the speakers, Bon Jovi’s crooning sneaking through the aisles of canned food and bread to serenade shoppers. A lady in a long, floral dress gives him a curt nod as she passes by, and Hyunjin tentatively returns the gesture. 

A man’s voice rings out from the back of the stuffy store, irritated and deep. “I told you once and I’ll tell you again: I’m _not_ handing it over to you. Not even if it’s just for tonight.” Leehwa’s voice cuts through the ambient noise and burbling murmurs of the store, not even bothering to audit her volume. “I’m begging you, Lowson. I have everything I need but this- it’s not for me, you dimwit, so stop being such an asshole about it!” 

“Aunt Leehwa?” Hyunjin calls out, peeking around the produce aisle warily. The voices pause before falling silent. 

“Over here,” Leehwa calls softly, and Hyunjin picks his way towards her, following the cigarette-scratchy sound of her voice. She’s leaning against a shelf full of gaudy, bright magazines, a small object wrapped in brown paper held tightly in her hand. Across from her stands a long haired man, diminutive in height. _Neither of them look too happy_ , Hyunjin notes with some apprehension. 

“Lowson, this is my nephew, Hyunjin. He’s visiting for the summer.”

“Hey,” Lowson rasps, and gives Hyunjin a once-over, the corners of his mouth flattening imperceptibly. His hair is black and sleek, with little ceramic beads knotted into it. He’s leather clad, and as Hyunjin moves closer he thinks he catches the scent of smoke and motor grease. 

“You excited for tonight?” 

Hyunjin’s heart drops. “Is there something that I should be excited for? Because people keep telling me that there’s something going on tonight and it’s _really_ freaking me out.” 

Lowson laughs, teeth bright against the tan skin of his face. “Leehwa didn’t tell you, huh? It’s the summer solstice tonight. June twenty-first.” 

“Why would that be important?” 

“It’s not.” Leehwa snaps, cutting Lowson off with a glare. “Let’s get going if you’re all done here.” 

She brushes past Lowson and gently guides Hyunjin away, her fingers a little too tight on his forearm. Hyunjin can feel people staring; their gazes burn the back of his neck and drill holes into his head. Once they’re outside, Hyunjin wrenches his arm away from Leehwa’s hold, face burning. 

“Do you want to explain what’s going on here? The guy from the electronics store told me to stay safe tonight. What are you involved in, Aunt Leehwa? What haven’t you been telling me- and don’t say that it’s nothing,” Hyunjin snaps, “Because you’ve been acting odd all week and I’d like some answers.”

Leehwa lets out a long, shuddering sigh, the crow feet around her eyes deepening. “Fine. Get in the truck.” 

Hyunjin grunts in agreement and throws himself into the truck, slamming the door violently behind him. 

Leehwa lets herself in a moment later, expression weary. They both sit in the quiet for a moment, Hyunjin an impatient ball of tension. Leehwa twists the keys in the ignition and peals out of the parking lot. The ride home is tense and noticeably more subdued. As if sensing Hyunjin’s foul mood, rain starts to fall, fat drops splattering against the car windows and rolling down the glass. 

“Shit,” Leehwa hisses, craning her neck to get a better view at the sky, “It’s starting sooner than I expected.” 

Hyunjin sits up, interested. “What is?” 

“We get real ugly summer storms around here sometimes. A couple a season, usually. This one is supposed to be a real mean bastard, though- sheriff warned us all to stay indoors tonight.” 

“Is that what Lowson was talking about earlier?” Hyunjin mutters, deflating a little as the truck pulls up the driveway to the cottage, the dirt now a churning mess of mud. His aunt throws the gear in park and reaches over to grab the groceries from Hyunjin’s lap. “Yeah- oh fuck, it’s really coming down!” Leehwa yells, and makes a mad dash for the front porch, holding the grocery bags over her head. 

_There’s really no point in running_ , Hyunjin thinks wryly, but does it anyway, laughing a little as the downpour of raindrops bite and sting at his skin. He stumbles onto the porch and takes a seat on the steps, watching the massive trees creak and groan under the force of the wind, his skin buzzing and tingling. 

“Get inside before you catch a cold, kid!” Leehwa shouts amusedly from inside, and SM peeks his head out of the open door, yellow eyes looking up at him quizzically. “Okay, okay,” Hyunjin pants, casting one last look at the seething forest before stepping inside and shutting the door behind him. 

The answering machine is lit up next to the phone, indicating towards several missed calls, but Hyunjin trots by it, perfectly happy to ignore what he knows must be his parents phoning- they’re probably upset that he hasn’t phoned in the last few days.

His aunt bustles around the kitchen, shoving vegetables into the fridge and boxes of Kraft Dinner into the pantry, YG and JYP tripping over her feet in their haste to beg for a treat. “I’m going to go get some candles, just in case the power lines go out- summer storms can be nasty.” 

Hyunjin slumps onto a stool, propping his elbows up against the cool granite of the counter. “Does she think I’m stupid or something?” He asks YG, reaching down to let the orange cat lick at his fingers. “ _Mrrrow_ ,” SM yowls, leaping up onto the kitchen counter in one smooth motion. Hyunjin can only assume that it means _Yes _or _Yes, you are actually that stupid.___

____

____

__Rain lashes at the bay windows, and Hyunjin turns his head to watch the wind howl through the trees, a strange feeling building in his gut, primal and hungry. The urge to go outside and run headfirst into the storm is so powerful that Hyunjin has to clutch the underside of the kitchen counter to keep from dashing out the front door._ _

__“I think there’s something wrong with me.” He whispers, shivering at the rush adrenaline coursing through his body for absolutely No Reason whatsoever._ _

__The three cats pause and turn their heads to look up at him in eerie synchronization, their round eyes reflective under the fluorescent lights. “You know,” Hyunjin starts, sneaking another quick glance out the window, “Maybe I’ll just go outside and sit on the porch for a little bit. Take some photos.”_ _

__SM lets out a short, irritated hiss, his pupils dilating. Another thinly veiled insult in Cat, clearly, but Hyunjin pays it no heed as he ever so sneakily tiptoes over to the front door and slowly cracks it open halfway, his mind already made up. He raises his finger to his lips and shushes the cats before quietly stepping outside and shutting the door behind him._ _

There’s something horribly wonderful about disobeying Leehwa, and authority in general- his parents, his teachers, older people. He doesn’t mean to, but the rush of endorphins he receives from giving a little _fuck you_! to the System is incredibly satisfying and rewarding to Hyunjin personally. A little niggle of guilt tugs at his conscience this time, however, and Hyunjin pauses for a brief moment before stepping off the porch steps and onto the mud-slick driveway. 

The electric urge in his stomach intensifies with each step he takes towards the beckoning woods, his vision blurred by the sheets of relentless rain. A faint yell comes from the direction of the cottage, and Hyunjin glances over his shoulder to see the dim orange lights of the cottage much farther away than he expects them to be. 

_Turn back!_ A little part of him yells. 

_Shut up. This is what you’re supposed to do! It feels good!_ The larger and infinitely more irrational part of him shrieks gleefully. And Hyunjin really can’t argue with that: with every step he takes towards the rippling, moving forest, the electricity buzzing in his stomach spreads outwards to lick at his bones. It’s a strange and heady euphoria, and Hyunjin is a dazed junkie for it, feet propelling him forwards until he hits the tree line. 

He pulls out his Nikon and begins to take pictures of the shaking forest, his pointer finger trembling as it hovers over the shutter button. He winds up in an unfamiliar part of the forest. Thanks to the dense clusters of trees, it’s almost quiet in comparison to the rest of the woods. 

Humming, he settles into a rhythm: point out an interesting shot, frame it in an appealing way, and carefully shoot it, making sure the lens is focused. 

_Ba-dum. Ba-dum dum dum. Ba- dum._

__Hyunjin pauses from where he’s crouched next to a thick tangle of knotted tree roots, head tilted to one side._ _

__Over the din of the rain and the storm, a low, throbbing drumming pours from deep inside the woods, rhythmic and steady. It’s barely audible under the roar of the wind, but the beat of it shakes the forest floor and makes Hyunjin’s teeth rattle in his skull._ _

__“Hello?” He calls out, but nothing answers him but the whistling howl of the wind through the trees, and that pulsating beat._ _

_Ba-dum dum dum dum. Ba-dum Ba-dum._

_I’m a fucking idiot,_ he thinks, letting out a peal of nervous laughter as he narrowly avoids being hit in the head by a falling tree branch. A low, smooth tone echoes cuts through the din, rising and falling by one or two half-tones. 

“That sounds like a horn.” Hyunjin mutters, wiping his bangs back from his rain-slick face. “Are people having a goddamn storm kegger out here?” 

_You know that’s not it,_ that tiny, sensible part of him whispers. _It’s something bad. You remember what they use horns for._

“Hunting,” Hyunjin whispers, surprising himself. He clears his throat. “In the past, they used horns to signal the start of a hunt.” He blinks, staring out into the southern part of the woods. Chan had mentioned something about that part of the woods earlier in the week- something about it being off limits? About it being dangerous? _Just what kind of shit goes on in this town?_

__

__

Another horn blares, closer this time, and Hyunjin startles. The low, echoing sound strikes a chord within him; it makes him panic. And so he runs, crashing wildly through bushes and leaping over creek beds in his haste to put some distance between himself and the horns. 

He runs until his legs force him to stop and kneel on the soaked forest floor, chest heaving. He whimpers quietly as he hears the yells and joyful shouts drawing closer. The earth trembles as the dull thudding of hooves draws nearer. 

__With the last of his energy, he drags himself into a heavy thicket of elderberry bushes, wincing as the thorns scrape at his face and hands, and curls himself into a tight ball. The shouts can’t be far now- maybe twenty or thirty feet away- and Hyunjin can clearly make out men and women cheering and hollering, their horses whinnying._ _

__“Oh Christ!” He whines, anxiety turning his blood to slow, icy slush. He’s going to die like this, maybe: soaked and chilled to the bone, alone in a forest surrounded by a depraved group of people. It’s something straight out of a Stephen King novel; it’s unthinkable, unreasonable, but it’s happening and Hyunjin has absolutely no idea what to do. Leehwa warned him, in her roundabout way, and so did the people from town._ _

__He should have listened. He should have stayed indoors._ _

A male voice calls out almost directly in front of him, thick and foreign. Hyunjin freezes. _Don’t move. Don’t make a sound._

__From where he lies, Hyunjin is almost directly parallel to the hooves of the man’s horse- great, sharp things, covered in mud and what looks almost like blood. He can hear the thing breathing- hot, wet rasps, deep and guttural. A woman calls back, farther away this time, and the man above him makes a sharp noise of disappointment._ _

The man moves his horse away, and as he does, Hyunjin realizes that the man is not riding a horse. He is the horse. His lower body is all horse, the upper half entirely human, and Hyunjin barely bites back a bewildered shout as the man- creature- ( _centaur_ , his brain supplies helpfully) scans the area one last time before trotting off. 

__Hyunjin lies there for an undefinable amount of time in a suspended state of shock, his lips and cheeks numb with cold. A beetle scurries over his shoe, pincers clicking irritably, and he watches it pass by as if in slow motion._ _

__There are two possibilities at play here: one, that he’s hallucinating or has temporarily lost his sanity, causing him to see bloodthirsty creatures from mythology. It’s more practical, but Hyunjin’s gut leans towards the second possibility: that perhaps he’s not crazy, and that centaurs (and other inhuman beings) exist in these woods._ _

_It would explain the way Leehwa’s been acting, and the people from town as well._ What had Lowson said about today? Something about the date- _the summer solstice_ , Hyunjin realizes, fighting back a sneeze. _It definitely has something to do with what I just saw._

__He waits to move out from under the bush until the drumming fades and until he’s completely and utterly soaked to the bone._ _

__“Leehwa’s going to kill me,” He mumbles, shaking out the pins and needles from his hands and feet._ _

__“What’s this tasty thing?” Someone rasps, and Hyunjin lets out a pained yelp as he’s roughly pulled out of the bush by his feet._ _

__Staring down at him is quite possible the ugliest little creature Hyunjin has ever seen in his entire life. It looks like a goblin, he thinks, a little nauseated. The little horns curling up around the sides of the creatures head confirm Hyunjin’s suspicions._ _

_Totally a goblin. Jesus Christ._

__The goblin is bald, and it makes his bulging eyes much too large for his head. “Hello there,” He croons, displaying several sharp, serrated teeth, “Dorcas was gonna go pickin' for Dorcas’ berries, but Dorcas thinks you’d be a much better meal!”_ _

__“Uh.” Hyunjin stares up at the little creature dumbly._ _

__“Not too bright, are you? That’s fine. Dorcas always feels guilty when eating the smart ones.”_ _

__“Uh,” Hyunjin says again, this time with more force. “No. I’m not dumb. Please don’t eat me?” The goblin lets loose a great, hacking laugh at this, his bony shoulders shaking. “Silly morsel. You don’t get to make demands. Not tonight.”_ _

__“No,” A new voice says from somewhere above their heads. “But I do. Let him go.”_ _

__Dorcas glares up at the dripping forest canopy, eyes lidded. “Dorcas found the morsel, tree-bug. He is Dorcas’ to eat!”_ _

__A long sigh. “You don’t want a repeat of the last time you tried to eat a person, do you?” Dorcas makes a face and scratches his hairy chest, snivelling a little. “Tree-bug is always interfering with Dorcas. Maybe tree-bug should come down so Dorcas can eat him, instead.”_ _

__“Dorcas,” the voice says, bordering on irritated, “Leave.”_ _

__The goblin casts one last baleful look down at Hyunjin before stalking off into the undergrowth, hissing lowly under his breath. Hyunjin lies there for a long moment to catch his breath, arms and legs eagle spread against the wet ground._ _

__“Are you okay?” The voice calls out softly._ _

__“I mean, I was just hunted by a bunch of goddamn centaurs and nearly became goblin fodder, so not really.” Hyunjin exhales heavily. “You’re the pinecone guy, right?”_ _

__“You remember me?”_ _

__Hyunjin chuffs. “Of course, dude. I’m not used to stuff like that happening- I’m from Pennsylvania. You gave me that pretty feather, too- thanks for that, by the way.”_ _

__That same soft giggle floats down from the treetops, light and airy. “Most people forget that they ever talked to me, you know. Your memories fade so quickly.”_ _

_He dreams of half formed, ethereal things- silk on water, the light brush of something soft against the slope of his nose, the smell of crushed grass and cherry wine-_

__“They do,” Hyunjin agrees, and they both settle into a heavy silence._ _

__“You should probably go now,” the voice says sadly, “because it’s only going to get rowdier from here. The trolls and imps get pretty violent during solstice nights.”_ _

__Grunting, Hyunjin attempts to lift himself up. “I. Uh. Don’t think I can move?”_ _

__The branches above him rustle. “Oh! Okay. One moment.”_ _

__Hyunjin’s breath catches in his throat as a slim, shadowy figure drops noiselessly down from the canopy at least thirty feet above. It’s a boy, about his age, his features delicate and almost elfin. His hair is wavy, and a startling shade of cherry red- the same colour as his wings. The wings themselves span a good ten feet, copper secondary feathers overlapping darker primary feathers._ _

__He’s terrifyingly, inhumanely beautiful._ _

__The boy bends down over him, large brown eyes round and concerned. “Did anything bite you? Or cast anything on you?”_ _

__“No.” Hyunjin manages to croak out, eyes wide. The boy has a little mole on his left cheek, and Hyunjin resists the delirious urge to reach out and poke it. “You’re shivering,” the boy notes, eyebrows knitting together._ _

__Hyunjin coughs. “Yeah, well, that’s what happens when you hide under a bush during a summer storm for a couple hours.” He lets out a sharp noise of surprise as the winged boy bends down and picks him up easily, one harm bracing his head while the other curls around his knees. He’s much stronger than he looks._ _

__The boy lets out a little grunt and starts walking, wings crossed neatly over his shoulder blades. “You shouldn’t come into the woods anymore, you know. It likes to lure people in, and you seem to have trouble with ignoring it.”_ _

__“I’m new here,” Hyunjin rasps, fighting back a chest rattling cough. “I’m just visiting my aunt for the summer.”_ _

__“Is she the one with long hair?”_ _

__Hyunjin blinks, surprised. “You know her?” The boy smiles wryly and shakes his head, causing droplets of water to fly everywhere. “No. But she’s been watching me. There’s no point; your kind always seem to forget me.” He looks down at Hyunjin, his eyes a little sad. Something hot and tight squeezes Hyunjin’s chest._ _

__“I remember you, though- I’ve been trying to find you ever since you gave met that feather.”_ _

__The boy grins crookedly at this, and for reasons he can’t quite seem to explain, Hyunjin’s heart threatens to beat out of his chest. “You’re a little bit different, then.”_ _

Hyunjin hums and lets his head loll back against the boy’s shoulder. He smells familiar, like home- _like cherries and grass and-_ “What’s your name?” The boy murmurs, his breath warm and dry against Hyunjin’s forehead. 

__“Hy-It’s Hyunjin,” He squeaks, feeling very exposed in the arms of this very attractive boy with big brown eyes. “Hyunjin Hwang.”_ _

__The boy makes an approving noise. “Oh, I like that! That’s a good name. I’m Seungmin, by the way.”_ _

__“Seungmin,” Hyunjin says, letting the syllables roll off of his tongue, and flushes a little at the pleased smile Seungmin gives him. He’s feeling ill; awful, actually, but as Seungmin starts to talk quietly about the different kinds of evil, poisonous entities that stalk the surrounding woods, Hyunjin thinks that this escapade might have been worth it._ _

Seungmin shifts Hyunjin in his arms a little, causing him to break out of his trance. “This is your house, right?” Hyunjin looks up and yes; there’s the cottage, brightly lit and seemingly untouched by the storm. Every single window is lit with a bright golden light, and for a long moment Hyunjin feels an overwhelming wave of guilt. _Leehwa must be worried out of her mind._

__“I can bring you into your room,” Seungmin says, spreading out his wings. “Your aunt doesn’t put screens on her windows.”_ _

__Hyunjin raises an eyebrow. “How do you know that?”_ _

__Seungmin shrugs, a mischievous grin creeping across his face. “Just wanna make sure she doesn’t have too much information on me. I’ve seen the journals she keeps about me- it’s impressive, honestly. She really doesn’t want to forget.”_ _

He begins to trot towards the cottage, wings spread outward. “Just what _are_ you?” Hyunjin asks. That buzzing is there again, liquefying his bones and making his head spin. _Though that might just be the hypothermia hitting you_ , Hyunjin’s brain chimes in. 

__“Not human,” Seungmin says simply, and launches the both of them into the air, wings pumping furiously._ _

“Oh _fuck_!” Hyunjin shrieks as the ground falls away from beneath them, his stomach dropping with a swooping sensation. “Ooooh my God!” 

__Seungmin laughs joyfully, the noise ringing out high and clear in the fog swirling around them, and Hyunjin’s stomach swoops a little more. It only takes a few moments to reach the upper floor of the cottage, Seungmin’s wings buffeting large gusts of wind around the two of them. He lands on a thick oak branch parallel to Hyunjin’s window, breathing a little strained._ _

__“Push up the window for me?” Hyunjin complies, though it takes a couple of tries for his cement-heavy arms to unlock it and push it up._ _

__The both of them tumble onto the floor of Hyunjin’s bedroom with a muffled thump, Hyunjin wincing as one of Seungmin’s wings whap him across the face. “Thanks,” Hyunjin mumbles around and mouthful of feathers. “I really would have been boned without you.”_ _

__Seungmin trembles a little and pulls his wing away, cheeks red. “It’s no problem. You should let your aunt know you’re back here.” He stands up and moves back towards the window. Involuntarily, Hyunjin’s hand snakes out to wrap loosely around Seungmin’s ankle. The boy freezes, his wings fluttering slightly._ _

“Promise you’ll come visit me again? I won’t forget you.” _I don’t think I could if I tried._

__Seungmin turns to look over his shoulder, the tips of his ears pink. “You’d want that?”_ _

__“Duh, yeah,” Hyunjin breathes, fingers letting go of Seungmin’s ankle to flop against the rug, palm open. Seungmin shoots him a breathless, beaming smile, eyes sparkling._ _

__“Okay, then. I promise I’ll come see you soon.”_ _

__There’s a sudden clatter downstairs. “Hyunjin?” Leehwa shouts, her voice laced with panic and fear. “Up here,” Hyunjin shouts weakly, and he thinks he hears her give a little sob of relief._ _

__“I’m coming up, kiddo- I’m going to kill you, you know.”_ _

__“You have a lot of explaining to do first!” Hyunjin yells back, and turns to give Seungmin another smile._ _

__There’s nobody there, though. Seungmin is gone, and the only evidence of the ordeal Hyunjin has just been through is a damp patch on the carpet, an open window, and the crystal clear image of Seungmin’s bright smile._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *slaps chapter* whee howdy! i sure fit a lot of words in here!!! this is unedited + i'll probably edit it tomorrow.! thanks for all the kind words on the last chapter!!! <3333
> 
> blease drop some comments and kudos. smash that like button. i'm going to watch buzzfeed unsolved now and eat my body weight in oreos
> 
> (im on twitter @skyracha + tumblr @saltbin!)


	3. trust (it's always the first to go)

When Hyunjin was very little, he had a nanny. Her name is the one thing he doesn’t remember, but he recalls her face with crystal-clear clarity. She was very beautiful, and very kind, and she always made Hyunjin’s sandwiches the way he liked it: more jelly than peanut butter, no crusts. 

She used to show him magic tricks- make little flowers appear from behind his ear, pull a ladybug from his shirt pocket. “How do you do that?” He had asked in stuttering six-year-old speech, and she had smiled mischievously, her long red hair bouncing like fire in loose curling waves. 

“You should know that it’s magic, little one.” 

Hyunjin had stared up at her, eyes wide and sparkling. “Will you do magic tricks for me forever and ever?” She smiled, pulling a four leaf clover out of his fringe. 

“Until you’re old enough to do them yourself, I will.” 

“Promise?” 

She’d held out her pinkie finger, and he held out his. “Pinky promise.” 

And he had believed it to be really true, believed in it enough to whisper their little secret to his mother one night before bed. His mother had told his father, and that had resulted in his father firing his nanny the next day right in front of Hyunjin, screaming at her to _stop infecting my son’s mind with nonsense_! All these years later, he remembers the way she had looked at him as she was forced out the door: a little sad, but assured, like she knew he would be fine. 

And he was, mostly, but ever since then he’s been hesitant to make promises. They’re powerful things, words. String the right ones together, and you have a contract; a binding agreement, something to tie people together. A promise is not a light thing to make, and to make a broken one is even more dangerous and jagged.

Seungmin is the second person he’s made a promise, a real thing, with. And Hyunjin is half conscious and barely knows him. Barely knows what’s real and what’s a product of running through a rain-soaked forest at night for hours. _The window is open_ , Hyunjin reminds himself. _There’s water on the carpet. He was here. He was real. He will come back._

_You better keep your promise_ , Hyunjin thinks, his head spinning. Leehwa bursts through the door, Lowson close behind her. “You _idiot_ ,” Leehwa sobs, kneeling down beside him. “You could have gotten yourself killed!” 

“Maybe if you’d told me that there was a herd of centaur running around the woods, I wouldn’t have gone into them.” Leehwa’s face whitens, and Lowson lets out a short barking laugh, his eyes curving up into half crescents. 

_What on earth is he doing here_? Hyunjin thinks hazily.

“You were able to see them?” Leehwa breathes, her hands pushing back Hyunjin’s sweaty fringe. 

“Uh-huh. Goblin almost made me his next meal, too.” 

Leehwa scrubs her face with her free hand. “Jesus on a goddamn stick. This is all my fault.” 

“Sure is,” Lowson says brusquely, ignoring the irritated stare the woman shoots his way, “But we should probably be getting your niece some treatment. He doesn’t look like he’s doing to well- god only knows what kind of germs that goblin transferred over to him.” 

“M’fine,” Hyunjin slurs, shooting his aunt a weak thumbs up. “Jus’ a lil tired.” 

SM prances into the room to situate himself on Hyunjin’s wet torso, claws kneading into his numb abdomen. Leehwa snorts and shakes her head. “I don’t think so, kiddo. I’m gonna go phone Dr. Han. I’m sure he has his hands full tonight, but he’ll make time for us.” 

“Ugh,” Grunts Hyunjin. Was the ceiling of his bedroom always so brightly coloured? Gaze unfocused, he tries to point up at it. _It’s moving, too,_ he tries to say, but all that falls from his uncooperative lips is “Argh.” 

“Hyunjin?” 

“Uh,” He mutters, and then passes out, the heady scent of cherries a lingering perfume in the air. 

**  
He comes to with someone’s finger up his nose. “Oh, geez,” Someone says, hastily withdrawing their finger. “Didn’t realize that you were going to wake up so quickly. Usually my juice knocks people out for a solid nine and a half hours!” 

“What?” Hyunjin mutters, cupping his hands protectively over his stinging nose, his aching limbs screaming in protest. He blinks a couple time to remove the sleep from his eyes. It’s mid-afternoon, apparently, if the soft gold light streaming through his window is any indication. 

“Who are you, and what did you do to my nose?” 

The redheaded man sitting on his bed chuckles nervously, his large round glasses taking up most of his face. He’s wearing a very homey looking wool sweater and baggy sweatpants. A huge leather bag rests on the dresser next to him. 

“Sorry about that- I’m Dr. Han, but you should probably know me as Jisung’s father.” He hesitates. “I’m an expert on both human and non-human ailments, and I just shot your left nostril full of an anti-rotgut vaccine. _Very common_ in lower class goblins, I’m afraid.” 

_Makes sense_. Hyunjin shift in his bed, wincing as all the muscles in his leg collectively decide to spasm. Dr. Han smiles sympathetically. “You’re going to be like that for a day or two, I’m afraid- you were out in that storm for a touch longer than you should have been.” 

“So Jisung knows? About all... that?” Hyunjin gestures vaguely in the direction of the forest. Dr. Han’s smile droops a little bit, his expression darkening. 

“He knows. Most people in town do. I wish he didn’t- things would be a lot easier if he was oblivious.” Dr. Han scratches his ear absentmindedly. “I hope you’re not too upset with him and the rest of the boys for not telling you. You can imagine how the rest of the world would react to a place like this.” 

“What is this place, exactly?” 

Dr. Han blinks at him, surprised. “Well, where the veil between this world and the Other is the thinnest, of course. Penn is geographically the easiest place on earth for Other to cross through.” 

Hyunjin lets out a breath. _Monsters are Real. The forest is a portal for inhuman creatures to pass through._ “Huh.” 

Dr. Han nods empathetically. “Yup. Lot to take in, isn’t it? You’re taking it much better than Jisung did. There’s more details, of course, but I’ll let Leehwa tackle that bit.” He pats one of Hyunjin’s feet consolingly. “You get lots of rest, okay? I’ll send Jisung over in a bit to spoon feed you some blatpepper soup- it’ll warm you right up!” 

“No, really, that’s absolutely not necessary,” Hyunjin says, but Dr. Han is already out the door, leaving Hyunjin with a throbbing left nostril and an overload of information. 

“ _Mrrrow_ ,” says a cat-voice, and Hyunjin looks over to see SM crouched beside his laundry basket. “Oh, hey,” Hyunjin says, giving the black cat a little wave. “I’m still alive. No need to worry about me or anything.” 

SM lets out a very human sounding _hmfph_ before leaping up onto the bed and into Hyunjin’s lap. Hyunjin lets out a sharp wheeze. “Christ, you’re heavy!” He chuckles as SM butts his head into Hyunjin’s hands insistently. “Nothing like me almost dying to make you cuddly, I guess.” 

“You really could have died, kiddo.” He glances up to see Leehwa leaning against the doorway. She looks as though she’s aged decades in the span of one night, her hair tumbling around her shoulders in loose, curly waves. 

“Sorry,” Hyunjin whispers, shame forcing his gaze to the ground. “I just. It was calling to me. The forest wanted me. I could hear it.” Leehwa closes her eyes, multiple expressions flitting across her face before it settles on fatigue. 

“It’s not a normal forest, and this isn’t a normal town. I’m sorry for not telling you right away- I didn’t know how you would handle it.” She pads across the room to sit in the chair next to his bed. “I mean, it sounds crazy, right? And I was so sure that you wouldn’t be harmed if you were none the wiser.” 

Hyunjin reaches out and pats her hand tentatively. He never had been very good at comforting upset adults. Or other people, in general. “It’s okay. Just don’t make me eat any more blackberry pie for breakfast and we’ll be fine.” Leehwa lets out a sigh-laugh at this, eyelashes furiously batting tears away. 

“Oh man, please don’t cry, I swear I won’t go into the woods by myself like, ever again. Scout’s honour,” Hyunjin says solemnly, giving Leehwa the the three-finger salute. Leehwa snorts wetly, and knocks Hyunjin in the head gently with her knuckles. 

“Deal.” 

Leehwa explains a lot of things to him, then: that the majority of the townspeople are aware of the creatures roaming the forest, that there’s a deep, thick spell keeping all magical beings within the confines of Penn. “We only lose a couple tourists to the forest each year,” Leehwa states matter-of-factly, expression thoughtful. “Most of them are assholes, anyways. Always stepping on our flowerbeds and littering.” Hyunjin should be horrified, but he just snickers instead. Most surprisingly comes the epiphany that Leehwa herself is not entirely human. 

“Part witch,” She confirms. “On my mother’s side, I think.” 

Hyunjin whistles lowly. “Does that mean my mother is part witch too?” He can’t really imagine that- his stiff and unchanging mother, able to make potions? Levitate? Cause natural disasters, even? Leehwa sighs and shifts a purring SM from one knee to the other. 

“No. I was adopted by your mother’s parents around the age of six or seven. My real mother had no other choice, really- witches are only allowed to have two children per family unit and I was the unfortunate twin- a third child.” 

“Oh.” Hyunjin picks at a loose thread hanging off his pillowcase. “Sorry.” 

Leehwa smiles gently. “It’s okay. I’m not upset about it, really. The forest taught me everything I needed to know.” 

“Wicked,” Hyunjin breathes, eyes wide. So the forest- Forest, capital F?- really had been moving, had been whispering that night in the woods. Something not just alive, but sentient as well. 

She grins and pats his head before forcing him to drink a thick, bitter tea that makes him pass out almost immediately. When he comes to some hours later, Jisung is sitting where Leehwa had previously been, Changbin and Chan on either side of him. 

“Yo,” Jisung chirps, holding up a bowl. “My dad said that you were in need of some blatpepper soup. Shit is life-changing.” 

“Not in a great way, though.” Changbin adds, pushing his round, lensless glasses up the bridge of his nose. Chan nods in agreement. 

Jisung rolls his eyes. “It’s not that bad. Just a little spicy.” 

Chan leans back, legs crossed. “That’s because you don’t have any taste buds. Nobody in your family does.” He yawns and scratches his stomach. “Anyways, how you holding up with all the new information, Hyunjin?” 

Hyunjin blinks groggily and shrugs. His nose still stings faintly. “Makes enough sense, I guess.” 

Changbin snickers. “You’re taking it way better than Jisung did. He was the last out of all of us to know. He walked in on his dad patching up a unicorn and passed out right there on the spot.”  
Jisung makes a dour face and ruffles the shorter boys’ hair aggressively, cackling as Changbin slaps his hands away. 

“It’s a lot to take in! It might be normal for people to believe in aliens now, but an entire other plane of existence filled with mythological creatures? That’s way harder to swallow.” 

“It is.” Chan admits, peering over Jisung’s shoulder to look at the bowl of soup, “Changbin and I grew up with this lifestyle, so we can’t really relate to what you and Hyunjin are feeling right now.” 

“My great-great-great grandmother was three-fourths dwarf on her father’s side,” Changbin explains, “So that’s why I’m. Shorter. And Channie here is a shapeshifter- he turns into a boar, by the way, which is why he slobbers everywhere and has a disgusting amount of chest hair.” Chan lets out a very animalistic growl and whacks the shorter boy upside the head. “I do not. I shave! Every day!” 

Jisung nods smugly. “Exactly. And I remember when I was in shock over finding out, a nice bowl of blatpepper soup really helped me clear my senses.” He loads a spoon up with a thick red liquid and pokes at Hyunjin’s mouth with it. “Open up!” 

Hyunjin shakes his head, recoiling at the sharp, unpleasant odor. Changbin flashes him a pitying smile. “It’s worse if you resist. It’s really not that bad.” Jisung’s lower lip trembles, and he looks over at Hyunjin with the best pair of puppy-dog eyes he’s ever seen. _He’s so cute_ , Hyunjin thinks despairingly, opening his mouth resignedly. _How could I say no to that face?_

The broth hits his tongue, and for a moment it’s really not that bad. _Tastes kind of like spicy nachos_ , Hyunjin thinks. It’s hot and almost cheesy- really not as awful as it smells. And then the spice actually kicks in with the intensity of a thousand suns, and Hyunjin gags, motioning for water. The three boys sit there watching him cough with wide eyes. “I think he might be dying,” Changbin muses, eyebrow raised. 

“I think he wants water,” Chan says, and Hyunjin nods furiously, hands clasped together pleadingly. Jisung pulls a swathe of wildflowers out of a glass jar on the windowsill and hands it to Hyunjin. “Here- drink this.” Hyunjin doesn’t even complain at the dirty water; he drinks all of it, wincing at the bits of sand and soil that get stuck in his mouth. 

Changbin rubs his eyes with one hand. “That was... horrifying.” 

“And a little hot,” Chan adds, shrugging when the other three boys looks up at him incredulously. “What! It was!” 

"Weird fucker," Changbin snorts, shaking his head.

“Are you gay?” Hyunjin says curiously, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. The blonde nods, a little half smile on his face. “I like guys and girls. Is that going to be a problem?” Hyunjin shakes his head back and forth. 

“No- No, not at all. Sorry if it came across weird.” 

He’s not against anything like that at all. His father, on the other hand, is a completely different story. Hyunjin's always found it strange for his father to be so self-righteous, of all people-He’s _the immoral one. I’m pretty sure he’s done in most of the female staff at the law firm._

Chan chuckles and leans over to ruffle Hyunjin’s hair. “Don’t worry about it, dude. You’re fine. But you do need a shower,” He adds, sniffing Hyunjin’s shoulder and then recoiling dramatically. 

“I don’t smell that bad,” Hyunjin mutters, lifting his arm and smelling it anyways. “Oh. Maybe I do.” 

“Guess it’s true what they say about teenage boys and their lack of hygiene,” Jisung says moodily, tucking the pot of soup into a worn satchel. “He made that soup himself. It took him most of the night- blatpepper takes hours to cook properly.” Changbin whispers, giving Hyunjin a Meaningful Look. 

_Jesus_. Hyunjin’s mouth is still burning when he reaches over to tap on Jisung’s shoulder. “Hey. Leave the soup here. I’ll finish it.” The auburn haired teen hesitates, fingers playing with the leather strap of his satchel. “You really want it?” 

Hyunjin sighs. “Yes. I do.” His mouth is going to give him hell for it later, but the delighted little smile that creeps over Jisung’s face makes it worth it. Mostly. 

He dozes off for a little bit after the boys leave, dreams of the fleeting slide of someone’s hands on his arms and shoulders, hears a quiet, musical laugh- high and clear; like a bell. He wakes up a few hours later feeling disoriented and strangely euphoric. SM sniffs at his leg from his perch at the foot of Hyunjin’s bed and wrinkles his pink little nose. 

“Yeah, yeah, I smell like shit, I know,” Hyunjin grumbles, prodding the black cat with a sock-clad toe before carefully swinging his legs over the side of of the bed. He feels strangely weak; his legs are wobbly and there’s a dull ache building at the base of his skull. And he smells bad. Like really, really bad. 

He hobbles his way to the adjoining bathroom, wincing as every step sends a little flare of pain up his shins. A sigh of relief escapes him as he notices that there is shampoo and soap stocked in the shower. The bathroom window is cracked open slightly, and Hyunjin shivers as the cool evening air runs over his exposed skin, causing gooseflesh to prickle up his forearms. 

After turning on the water and sticking his hand under the spray to make sure that the water is neither too cold nor too warm, he unceremoniously sheds his stinky clothes and chucks them into the far corner of the bathroom. The water is hot and rhythmic in the tempo it sets against Hyunjin’s back, and he lets out a content little hum as the water works at the stiff muscles in his shoulders and sides. 

Steam fogs up the glass walls of the shower, and Hyunjin lazily draws shapes in it with his pointer finger, eyes heavy and sleepy. A frog, and then a flower, and then a dark, hooded thing with horns- Hyunjin jolts, alarmed, whipping his hand away from the glass. He peers at the foggy sketch, eyes narrowed, but the image has already begun to coalesce into shivering beads of water, the drawing sliding down the drain before he can fully comprehend what it was. 

Unease bubbles in his chest, pressing down against his ribs, and Hyunjin shakes his head back and forth to snap himself out of it, forcing the moment from his mind. He tips his head back, allowing the water to cascade down his face, flattening his bangs to his forehead. He touches the nape of his neck, a little startled to find his hair much longer than he’d thought. _It really is a mullet, now_. He should probably ask Leehwa to cut it, or see if there’s a barber shop in town- though he really doubts it. 

He’s still in shock, probably- there’s a world next to his. An entire world of different beings, some humanoid, others grotesquely different, and he had no idea that it had existed until now. Seungmin’s grinning face pops up into his head, and Hyunjin flushes a little, slapping his cheeks gently with his hands. _I wonder what he is. A bird creature of some sort? A hybrid? He looks almost like a person- if it weren’t for the wings._

Hyunjin lathers up his hair with strawberry-scented shampoo, flinching as some gets in his eyes and begins to burn. Seungmin had been wearing clothes too, hadn’t he? Hyunjin faintly recalls bright, soft clothing with heavy embroidery. 

_Definitely better quality clothing than the stuff we have here._

He could always ask Leehwa, or at the very least snoop through all of those journals she’s been keeping on Seungmin- does she do that for all the Other she sees, or is Seungmin different? Special? 

“Oh, you shower with your clothes off, too?” A voice says curiously, and Hyunjin lets out a blood curdling scream, dropping the soap in his haste to cover his exposed body. He looks up to see Seungmin peering over the edge of the glass shower wall, eyes round and a little amused. 

“Dude! I’m _naked_!” Hyunjin sputters, face red, and Seungmin lets out a little snicker before dropping down, his form undefined and blurred from behind the glass. “So? Where I come from, it’s normal to walk around naked. In _public_.” He says with relish. 

“Well,” Hyunjin hisses, furiously washing soap suds from his bangs, “Where I come from, nudists aren’t exactly accepted into society, you peeping tom!” There are several tiny, cherry red feathers swirling around on the shower floor. _It’s gonna be a fun time picking those out of the drain._

“My name isn’t Tom,” Seungmin says, confused. “It’s Seungmin. Did you forget?” 

Hyunjin lightly bangs his forehead against the ceramic tiles of the shower. “I-No. It’s a figure of speech- you know what? Forget it. Just don’t watch me shower like, ever again, okay?” 

He thinks he can see Seungmin shrug. “Sure. You have a weird bellybutton, by the way.” 

“I literally do not.” Hyunjin cracks open the shower door slightly, blindly reaching out for the towel he knows is hanging up. Hand fisted in the thick material, he pulls it towards himself with a little crow of triumph. “Oh, hello,” Seungmin says, his voice much closer than before. “You’re holding my tunic, you know. And a little bit of my chest.” 

Hyunjin yelps and drops his hand as though it’s been burnt. “Jesus. Can you just. Pass me the towel, please?” Seungmin hands him the towel wordlessly, though Hyunjin can imagine that he’s probably holding back a laugh. Hyunjin towels himself off inside the shower and then wraps it around his waist twice, because he’s been embarrassed enough already. 

He steps out of the shower, ready to give Seungmin a piece of his mind, and- oh. Well. He certainly wasn’t expecting him to be dressed like that. “ _Wow,_ ” He breathes, and Seungmin preens, a smug smile on his face. “Those are some seriously ugly clothes.” 

Seungmin’s smile drops. “Excuse me?” 

Hyunjin is barely able to bite back his laughter. “I’m sorry- did you get those out of a dumpster?” Seungmin is wearing what Hyunjin can only really describe as a neon explosion. The other boy is wearing hot neon pink leggings, a long and well-worn faux leopard fur coat that covers the bump of his folded wings, and an obnoxious amount of chipped wrist bracelets. The whole outfit is tied together with the ugliest and saddest pair of black pleather boots Hyunjin has ever seen.

Seungmin leans against the bathroom sink, clearly disappointed. He pushes out his lower lip, pouting a little. “I found a bunch of magazines dumped in the woods nearest to the town. I thought this is what people our age wore.” 

_Cute_ , Hyunjin thinks fondly, before catching himself. _Don’t be weird._

“Most people our age don’t really wear stuff like that,” Hyunjin says honestly, patting the the taller boy on the shoulder as he goes to fetch new clothing. “That kind of clothing is reserved for Halloween parties or for really bad clubbing.” 

“Clubbing?” Seungmin echoes, trailing after Hyunjin. “Like hitting?” 

Hyunjin snickers and rifles through his closet. “No, like dancing.” 

“I thought that I could speak English well, but apparently I can’t,” Seungmin whines, sticking his tongue out at SM as the black cat hisses at him before disappearing under Hyunjin’s bed. “One word has so many different meanings.” 

“The English language is stupid and hard,” Hyunjin agrees, making the other boy turn around and face the wall so he can get dressed. “My native tongue is much nicer,” Seungmin sighs, pulling at the sticky pink leggings uncomfortably. 

“What does that sound like?” Hyunjin says absentmindedly, shimmying on a pair of sweatpants and a faded Depeche Mode crewneck. He grabs a pair of sweatpants and shirt for Seungmin as well- _there’s no way in hell that clothing is comfortable._

**“Is e rud iongantach a th ‘annad** ,” Seungmin says, the consonants rolling and slipping off of his tongue like velvet, his voice suddenly much deeper, a low brass. Hyunjin shivers, a strange arc of electricity threading its way up his spine. He swallows, throat suddenly dry. 

“What did that mean?” 

“I said: ‘You smell like a wet dog’,” Seungmin replies, and the strange tension lifts as Hyunjin hits the taller boy in the face with the extra pair of sweatpants. “Here, asshole!” Seungmin grins and waves the spare clothes in the air tauntingly. “Thanks.” He starts to pull down his leggings, and Hyunjin screeches. 

“Oh my god! Don’t take those off in front of me, you fucking exhibitionist!” He covers his face with both hands and turns his back to the redhead. Seungmin laughs softly, like wind through the trees, and Hyunjin can feel his ears heating up. 

His parents would lose their minds, meeting someone- something- like Seungmin. Hell, he’s losing his mind a little, meeting someone like him. 

“These are much more comfortable,” Seungmin exclaims, plopping down next to Hyunjin on the bed. Hyunjin makes a strangled noise of agreement and turns back around- and, if it weren’t for the telltale bulge of his wings against the back of his t-shirt, Seungmin could completely pass as human. A very handsome human, maybe, but being attractive was not a bad thing to be noticed for. He wears Hyunjin’s Aerosmith shirt quite nicely. 

_You sure think a lot about how attractive he is_ , a little voice whispers sneakily into his ear, _and about how kind he is. Shut up_ , Hyunjin thinks back. _There’s nothing wrong with noticing that people are attractive._

Seungmin, oblivious to Hyunjin’s internal battle, leans over the side of Hyunjin’s bed, peeking under the bedspread. He pulls something out from under the bed, and blows dust off of it. 

“What’s this?

“Oh,” Hyunjin says, surprised. “That’s my Walkman.” 

“Walkman,” Seungmin repeats slowly, fumbling a little with the _kuh_. “What does it do?” 

Hyunjin reaches under the bed, feeling around for his headphones. “It plays music,” He explains, plugging the headphones in and setting the tape up. “Here.” 

He carefully places the pads of the headphones over Seungmin’s ears, flushing a little at the close proximity. The redhead watches him with wide, open eyes, the Walkman made chunkier in his thin, delicate hands. Hyunjin presses **PLAY** with a little smile, grinning as Seungmin’s jaw drops with an almost childlike wonder. 

“ _Reach out and touch faith_ ,” Depeche Mode croons, the sound muffled and tinny to Hyunjin’s ears. 

“ _Someone to hear your prayers_

_Someone who cares_

_Your own personal Jesus_

_Someone to hear your prayers_

_Someone who’s there_ ”

The song ends, leaving Seungmin looking breathless and disappointed. “Can I make it go again?” He whispers, turning the device over in his hands carefully. “Yeah,” Hyunjin says, and presses **REPEAT** , a smile twitching at the corners of his mouth. 

Seungmin listens to the song again, and again, and then a dozen more times, until he’s mouthing along to the words and twirling around Hyunjin’s bedroom in a graceful, stumbling daze of red hair and tiny down feathers, nodding his head aggressively along to the thick bass notes and shivering synth chords. 

And Hyunjin watches, hands tucked under his chin. He watches Seungmin jump and spin and laugh, watches the redhead knock his knee into the corner of the dresser and roll around on the floor before jumping right back up to lip-sync along with Dave Gahan.

He thinks then of the surge of relief he felt when Chris spoke- _I like guys and girls. Is that going to be a problem_ \- thinks of holding another man in the same way he’s held his past girlfriends, wonders how different it would be. He’s never been attracted to men before, never thought of kissing a man on the lips at all- but looking at Seungmin, it’s easier to imagine and even easier to want. It wouldn’t be as soft as holding girls is, that’s for sure- would he like it, if he did? 

_Oh god_ , Hyunjin thinks despairingly as Seungmin picks SM up and dips him in time to the beat of the song. _I think I might be a little bit attracted to him._

Footsteps on the stairs make the both of them freeze. “Hyunjin?” Lowson calls, his smoky voice barely audible. “Anyone else up there with you?” Hyunjin catches the expression that rushes across Seungmin’s face, then- something dark and almost fearful- before it settles back into wide eyed alarm. 

“No, just me and my Walkman,” Hyunjin calls back, making a shooing motion at Seungmin in the direction of the window. Seungmin shakes his head firmly, and pulls off his headphones in one fluid motion before throwing himself into Hyunjin’s closet and closing this door. _Am I living in a teen rom-com?_ Hyunjin thinks wildly, scrabbling for the Walkman and throwing himself under the sheets at the same time. 

Lowson opens the door, his gaze settling on a very sleepy looking Hyunjin. “Thought I heard someone talking to you.” Hyunjin shakes his head drowsily. “Nope. Just me and Dave Gahan.” He waves the Walkman around in the air loosely. 

Lowson raises a bushy eyebrow. “You and Dave Gahan were playing dress up, too?” He gestures over to where Seungmin’s discarded dumpster clothing lies in a heap near the laundry basket. 

Hyunjin flushes bright red, but maintains eye contact. “Yup. Why are you always here? Are you and Leehwa dating or something?”

“I supply her with the necessary ingredients for her to do her work,” Lowson replies smoothly, gaze sweeping the room. “Those ingredients aren’t found on this side of the veil. But that’s besides the point,” He says sharply, cutting Hyunjin off. “You shouldn’t be keeping a girl in here without telling your aunt.” 

“I’m not,” Hyunjin snaps, his gaze flicking over to the closet. He winces as Lawson follows his line of sight and stalks over to the slightly ajar closet. _There definitely isn’t a girl in there._ Hyunjin bites his thumbnail nervously as Lawson throws open the closet door. 

It’s empty. 

“Huh,” Hyunjin says, and Lowson turns back around, slowly shutting the door behind him. “Guess there were really no girls in here.” The older man has the decency to look a little shamefaced, at least. Lowson awkwardly grunts out a low _My bad_ before lumbering out of the room, scratching his head. 

“I do not like that guy,” Hyunjin mutters, staying in bed for a long moment to make sure that the older man is finally gone. “I don’t know what Leehwa sees in him.” A muffled thump emanates from the direction of the closet, followed by a muffled swear. 

As quietly as he possibly can, he gets out of bed and tiptoes over to the closet, turning the knob carefully. “Seungmin?” He whispers, slowly opening the closet door. “Ugh!” Says a voice, muffled by the old wooden door. Hyunjin pulls it open to find someone that is definitely Not Seungmin sitting there, Hyunjin’s clothes scattered all over his lap. 

“Um, hey,” Hyunjin says slowly, taking in the stranger’s freckles and pinkish hair and pouting scowl, “Where’s Seungmin?” 

The stranger spits out one of Hyunjin’s dirty socks (gross) and glares up at him. “Dinnae be inside yer focking closet if I knew where he was?” He stands up and yelps as he hits the top of his head on the hanger rack. “ _Feck_!” 

Hyunjin backs up slowly. “Uh, sorry, then- oh, you’re like him!” The stranger arches an eyebrow at that, fluffing out his peach and rust coloured wings to their full length- not quite as large as Seungmin’s, but almost. 

“Ah am, you bampot,” the boy snarls, gripping Hyunjin’s wrist tightly, “’N I’d like tae know where he is, ‘n why the feck he sent me here!” 

“I don’t know, and I don’t know!” Hyunjin shoots back, shaking his wrist free of the shorter boy’s’ grip. “He was hiding in my closet from my aunt’s friend and when I opened the door, you were there instead!” 

The stranger crosses his arms. His voice is jarringly deep in contrast to his round, pretty features. “Feck!” He says again, louder this time. “Yer his **leannan** , then. _Feck_.” 

“What’s a lee-ann-in?” Hyunjin says, casting a nervous look at his bedroom door. This friend of Seungmin’s is awfully loud. 

The stranger lets out a guffaw, slapping at his knee. “I ain’t telling ya. Good luck w’that one.” He sobers up. “Anywhoo, th’ names Felix. I’m Seungmin’s...babysitter,” He says, hesitating a little on the last part. “M’also his oldest friend. Knew ‘im since he was a wee bairn. Used ta play in his own **cac**.” 

“I understood maybe ten percent of what you just said,” Hyunjin admits, and Felix lets out a long suffering sigh. “ **O mo creach** ,” He hisses, in that same velvety, rolling language. He clears his throat and closes his eyes for a long moment, one of the muscles in his cheek twitching. 

“Okay,” He says, and Hyunjin makes a soft noise of surprise at the lack of accent. “Is this better for you?” The words are slightly stilted, but at least Hyunjin can understand them. 

“Yeah, thanks,” Hyunjin murmurs. “You don’t know where Seungmin has gone?” 

Felix cracks his knuckles. “That’s the thing- Hyunjin, is it? Hwang Hyunjin?- This kinda shit only happens when something bad happens to him. I’m basically his babysitter. I look after him and keep him entertained so he doesn’t get involved with the grown up, family stuff. Guess he tied the two of us together without me noticing, because now I’m here when I could be off drinking.” He lets out a deep breath. 

“And I will literally be skinned alive and eaten by his father if I don’t get him back mostly in one place.” 

Hyunjin blinks. “Oh.” 

Felix nods sombrely. “So, I’ll just sniff around your room for a little bit, and then we’ll go from there.” 

“You really think he’s in trouble?” Hyunjin says, watching Felix crawl around on his hands and knees, sniffing at the carpet like a dog. “Nobody just disappears from their sweetheart’s closet and triggers a complex danger spell for fun, Hyunjin.” 

“Ah,” Hyunjin murmurs, processes what Felix has just said, and chokes on air. “Wait, did you just say I was Seungmin’s _sweetheart_?” 

Felix pauses then, and stares at him, gaze flat and devoid of emotion. “Don’t worry about it. Our languages don’t match up very well, so If I use strange words, it's because of an error in translation.” 

He snickers at the look on Hyunjin’s face. 

“No need to be looking so damn disappointed about it, pretty boy.” 

They sit in silence for a while, then. Hyunjin starts to get a little worried because Felix is looking more and more agitated the more he pokes around Hyunjin’s room, and he doesn’t want Lowson to come back up and find a winged boy crawling around his carpet on all fours.

“Hey,” Felix says, and Hyunjin snaps his head up. “You recognize this?” He holds up a small, round button, no larger than his thumbnail. It’s silver and decorated with the detailed engraving of a boar’s head, the eyes small and enraged. There’s a little bit of black thread dangling from the backing. All in all, it’s completely unfamiliar to Hyunjin. 

“No- I don’t even know how it got into my room in the first place.” Hyunjin declares, squinting at the button with one eyes shut. Felix sighs. “Well, that’s not very helpful now, is it? The thing reeks of dark magic and you haven’t got a clue as to how it landed up in your room.” Hyunjin shrugs a little helplessly. 

“I really don’t. A doctor was in here this morning, and my friends arrived... after...” Hyunjin trails off. There’s something buzzing on the tip of his tongue, hiding just out of reach. What had the four of them been talking about, earlier? About the shock of discovering the Other and the veil and how it was different for Chan and Changbin because-

“-Boar,” Hyunjin breathes. Felix perks up. “What was that?” 

Hyunjin swallows. “My friends were over earlier- a very small part of one of them is dwarf, and the other one- he’s a shape shifter, apparently. He can turn into a boar.” Felix’s’ eyes glitter like diamonds, hard and cold in the fading light. 

“Good work, pretty boy. Let’s go see this friend of yours, then.” 

“What?” Hyunjin squeaks as Felix marches over to the window and lifts it up. “You mean now?” Felix grins, a little feral, and opens his arms. “Right now, if we both want to live to see the sun rise tomorrow. Seungmin’s father is not a forgiving man.” 

“Are you sure you’ll be able to fly with me?” 

Felix snorts. “Please. I could crush you into dust and snort it if I so desired.” As if to prove his point, he easily lifts Hyunjin bridal style and jumps out the window without so much as a warning. 

_“Fuck_!” Hyunjin screams, hands fisting tightly in the rough fabric of Felix’s’ tunic. 

“Now you’re speaking my language,” Felix laughs, and before Hyunjin knows it, they’ve caught an air current and are gliding a few hundred feet up. “Gonna need directions to your friends’ house, pretty boy,” Felix reminds him, and Hyunjin babbles out a barely decipherable address before tucking his head back into Felix’s’ chest. 

Felix cackles. “If Seungmin isn’t dead, he’s going to _kill_ me for rubbing my smell all over you.” 

“Is that another issue in translation?” Hyunjin says faintly, eyes squeezed tightly shut. Felix pats Hyunjin’s shoulder pityingly. “Sure.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't worry this isn't wthiypksm. seungjin Only fellas. anyways! christmas break! yay! expect more chapters soon! xoxoxo
> 
> (btw im @seungmic on tumblr instead of @saltbin now!)
> 
> seungmin + felix both speak scottish gaelic, which is fun and pretty. do with it what u will. i don't know a lot of it (even tho im scottish, eep!) but here's what they're saying: 
> 
> seungmin: is e rud iongantach a th ‘annad/ you're a lovely thing  
> felix: leannan/sweetheart  
> felix: cac/ shit  
> felix: o mo creach/ my god


	4. oh, your past will always follow you

Chan looks very surprised to see them. He’s wearing a matching set of sky coloured, rabbit patterned pyjamas, and he doesn’t look threatening (or capable of kidnapping somebody) at all. But then again, Hyunjin knows better than to trust somebody based on appearances alone.   
Chan rubs his eyes with the knuckles of one hand, swaying on his feet a little. His eyes are puffy with sleep, and his hair is fluffy and curly. He looks like cotton candy.

“Hyunjin?” Chan grunts blearily, opening the door a little wider, “What’s going on? And who is the winged dude?” Felix sets Hyunjin down on the doorstep gently before grabbing a big handful of Chan’s shirt and sniffing it, face sour. “You smell like a fucking farm, boar boy.” He snarls by way of greeting, and Chan stiffens, his eyes hardening. “I smell like Dior, asshole, and only my mama gets to call me boar boy. Who the fuck do you think you are?” 

Felix smirks and leans into the taller mans neck, whispering something into the shell of Chan’s ear that makes him go pale. “Fucking hell...” He peers over Felix’s’ back and mouths _What the hell did you get yourself into_? before gently stepping away from the both of them. “It’s cold,” Chan says simply, beckoning them inside. “Come on in. Just be quiet.” 

The inside of the Bang house is woodsy and earthy- much like Leehwa’s place, with herbs hanging off of the walls and a thick smell of oak and clean soil lingering in the still air. It makes Hyunjin sleepy- truth be told, he just wants to curl up on the shag rug of the hallway and just sleep, but there’s a larger and more insistent part of him urging him to find Seungmin before it’s too late. 

_Keep your promise, Hyunjin._

Chan leads them to a little doorway at the end of the hall, looking over his shoulder to make sure that they’re following behind him. “My room’s down here,” He says, carefully opening the door, and Hyunjin notices the way Felix stiffens up beside him, limbs tense. 

“Is there something wrong?” Hyunjin murmurs, and Felix shakes out his wings and casts a furtive look at the descending staircase. “Nothing. Our kind just don’t like the underground.” 

_I’d say it’s a little stronger than dislike_ , Hyunjin thinks, watching as Felix’s’ face grows paler with every step they take down the staircase, but he chooses not to comment on it. “Does that mean whoever took Seungmin is keeping him underground?” 

Felix scowls, eyes turning to steel. “Most likely.” 

“Who the hell is Seungmin?” Chan says, flicking on a light by the door. It’s a basement suite with a little kitchen. There is anime figures and blankets everywhere- Hyunjin doesn’t know why he was expecting something sinister. Maybe he really has nothing to do with this. 

“I should be asking you that.” Felix retorts, managing to look threatening even while turning faintly green around the edges. The taller boy fluffs out his wings and towers over Chan, his expression dark. “What the fuck did you do to him?” 

Chan shoots a helpless glance in Hyunjin’s direction, gaze confused. “Why is this guy here, Hyunjin, and who is Seungmin?” 

Hyunjin swallows. “Uh. This is Felix,” He says, and said boy turns around and gives him a dirty look. Oops. “And he’s looking for Seungmin- a friend of ours. We found a button with your family crest on it on the floor of my bedroom after he disappeared- Felix said that it smells bad?” Chan surreptitiously lifts his arm up and takes a whiff. “I don’t smell that bad.”

Felix lets out an exasperated sigh before stepping back, putting a few feet of distance in between the blonde and himself. “I said it smelled of dark magic, fool, not like pig.” Ignoring Chan’s offended gasp, he continues speaking. “You know Oberon, yes?” Chan stills and meets his gaze, eyes wide. “I- I know of him.” 

“He’s Seungmin’s father, and he will not be pleased to hear that I’ve managed to lose him. If you’re not going to talk, then I’m going to make you.” Chan’s mouth is hanging open, his hands limp at his sides as though the strings holding them up have been cut. 

“I’ve heard the name Oberon before,” Hyunjin says softly, wracking his brains for more information. Where _had_ he heard it before? It brushes against the back of his consciousness, soft and grey. Felix raises an eyebrow. “Oh? Did Seungmin tell you, then?” 

“Seungmin hasn’t told me anything,” Hyunjin mumbles, socked feet kicking at a One Piece figure, and Felix lets out a barking laugh. “Well, look at how that turned out.” You’re one to talk- you won’t tell me anything, either. 

He thinks then of Seungmin locked up deep underground, his wings wrapped around himself; a shaking ball of feathers. Something deeply protective runs through him at the thought, as well as a slow burning rage. Whatever has Seungmin is probably inhuman, but Hyunjin thinks about using his fists on the thing that took him when he finds it anyways. 

Chan sighs. “Let me see the button.” Felix and Hyunjin whip their heads around to look at him. “Really?” Hyunjin says, all thoughts of Oberon and shady, half-formed truths slipping back into the recesses of his brain. “Really,” Chan says, eyes steady and earnest, and Felix slips the silver button out of his pocket and hands it over to the blonde after a moment of hesitation. They get their answer almost immediately. 

“This isn’t my family crest.”

“ _What_?” Hyunjin and Felix exclaim in unison. Chan holds the small silver adornment up to the closest light and squints at it. “Yeah, that’s not our crest. We have rosemary and holly leaves behind the boar- this one doesn’t have any. One second,” He calls, and disappears briefly into a side room before bringing out a dusty picture frame. “See?” 

Hyunjin peers down at the dusty glass. Behind it is a yellowing, cracking piece of parchment paper, a boar painted on it neatly, a wreath of rosemary and holly circling its head. “Shit,” Hyunjin says, and Felix just frowns. “Back to square one.” 

“Maybe not entirely,” Chan says, rolling the little button around in the cupped palm of his hand. “Jisung’s older brother knows everything that there is to know about ancient and otherworldly symbols. He’s- special. He’d definitely be able to help.” 

Hyunjin and Felix exchange a look. Hyunjin shrugs tiredly. “Worth a shot.” Felix dips his head and sighs as Chan picks up a hot pink phone and begins to dial a number in. “Hey,” Chan say quietly. “I know it’s late, but something important has come up and I need your brother- Changbin, is that you?- anyways, would Hyunjin and his friend be able to tag along with me?” Chan pauses, gnawing on his lower lip. “Yes, I know it’s ten-thirty at night. It’s urgent, dumbass. Okay. Bye.” 

He settles the phone back into the cradle with a triumphant crow. “They said yes! Changbin’s over at Jisung’s place now, too.” 

“Who’s Changbin?” Felix says suspiciously, an eyebrow raised. “An angry part-dwarf teenager,” Chan says simply, and begins to pull on his Converse hi-tops. Hyunjin looks down at his own shoeless feet and sighs. Felix nudges him, almost causing him to fall over. “You don’t need shoes when you have me.” 

“Do you say that to every handsome human you meet?” Hyunjin asks tiredly, and Felix snickers before straightening up and looking into Hyunjin’s eyes, searching for something. ( _Cold October air, the crying of a young child, warm brown and gold light_ -) “Human?”

“What?” Hyunjin chokes out, but Felix just shakes his head and waves his hand. “Nothing.” 

They leave as soon as Chan has finished tying the double knots in his laces – “If I don’t do them like this, they come right undone-” and exit the house as quietly as they had entered it, the air around them less tense this time. Felix pats his shoulder expectantly, and with a sigh, Hyunjin hops on, mind someplace far away. 

What had that been? Hyunjin closes his eyes and concentrates, head throbbing slightly. The look in Felix’s’ eyes had been surprised- shocked, even, before the winged teenager had shuttered his expression. _Human_? 

( _The sweet stench of wet, rotting leaves, the clear taste of autumn evening, and the hazy, cloying scent of cherries_ \- )

Hyunjin jolts as a sharp biting pain bursts against his temple, leaving him open-mouthed and gasping. Felix turns his head towards him. “You okay?” 

“Yeah,” Hyunjin pants, the pain subsiding as quickly as it had started, “I’m fine.” Felix hums lowly, but says nothing more. Something is happening to him- Hyunjin can feel it in the same way that one knows when it’s about to snow- a shift in the atmosphere inside of him, warm and cold fronts butting heads. _I’ll focus on this later. After we find Seungmin._

Jisung’s house looks entirely normal- it’s the American dream house, with a tidy white picket fence and a latticed covered porch. It reminds Hyunjin of the neighbourhoods surrounding his high school back home- filled with people just trying to fit into society and make a living. 

_Thought I doubt anybody here would even be able to fit into real society_ , Hyunjin muses wryly as the front door is thrown open and Jisung and Changbin dash towards them with the clumsy excitement that is often seen in newborn puppies. Felix lowers Hyunjin onto the pavement, looking mildly taken aback. 

“Jinnie!” Jisung squeals, throwing himself into Hyunjin’s arms and hugging him tightly. “Are you okay?” He pats Hyunjin’s cheeks, shoulders, and head, making sure that nothing is outwardly broken. “I’m fine,” Hyunjin says, a little smile pulling at the corner of his mouth, “But we need help for a friend of mine, and Chan said that your brother could provide some information.” 

Jisung hums, eyes bright. “Yeah! Kevin is good with that stuff. He should be able to help.” 

Hyunjin tilts his head, a spark of recognition igniting within him at the mention of the name. “Kevin?”

Chan cuts him off. “Hyunjin’s friend is the son of mother-fucking _Oberon_ , Jisung.” 

Changbin and Jisung freeze. Changbin swivels to look at Hyunjin, eyes wide. “You’re friends with the _son_ of fucking _Oberon_?” 

“ _I guess so_!” Hyunjin cries, throwing his arms up in the air. “I guess it must be a big fucking deal if everyone reacts this way- I don’t even know who Oberon is!” 

Jisung blinks. “Everyone know who Oberon is. He’s the faery king.” 

Hyunjin’s brain overheats. “Like, the faery king faery king? As in the Oberon from a Midsummer’s Night Dream?” 

He remembers having read it in tenth grade English class, during a period of time where he’d been more interested in skateboarding and stealing his father’s spare cigarettes instead of paying attention in class. There’d been something else, too- a research project, where Hyunjin and a female classmate had been forced to do a presentation on something about faery courts- _what were they called, again_? 

Felix scoffs. “Hardly. Humans got it all wrong. Oberon is nothing like the simpering, spineless creature from your myths- he’s very real, and very unforgiving.” He shivers slightly. “How Seungmin is the child of that man is beyond me.” 

“So Seungmin is like. A prince.” 

The other four teenagers nod in sync. Chan yawns into his hand. “Yup.” Hyunjin shakes his head, feeling a little bit like he might be ill. “What the fuck.” 

Felix pats his shoulder in a vain attempt to make Hyunjin feel better. “The less you know, the safer you are. Seungmin was just trying to keep you safe, I think. Not that it’ll do you any good now,” He adds, looking to the east, where a large fog has started to roll in. “Looks like my Lord is already getting antsy. Let’s hurry up.” 

Changbin whistles lowly under his breath. “No pressure.” Felix shoots him a dirty look, and for the second time that night, they enter another house. Hyunjin’s been here a few times, actually- he’s slept over here with the rest of the town boys. They’d done normal things, like play Mario Brothers on Jisung’s fancy new Nintendo Entertainment System, stumble around the woods, and eat grease filled pizza until they’d all gotten ill. 

_And I never knew that none of them were entirely human_. It’s not a big deal- it’s not, but now Hyunjin searches of the eyes of every person he meets, wondering if their perceived humanity is nothing more than a pretty veil used to mesh with the rest of the world. 

“Yo, Kevin,” Jisung calls. “They’re here.” 

“One moment!’ Shouts a reedy, incredibly familiar voice, and with a start Hyunjin lets out a little laugh. “I’ve met him before, once- at the photography and electronics store.” He explains to a perplexed Jisung. “I had no idea you two were related at all.” 

“Yeah, he’s the weird nerd. I got all the good looks.” Jisung bats his eyelashes, missing the way that Felix’s’ eyes track his every move, a faint ruddy tinge creeping over the winged teenager’s face. _Interesting_ , Hyunjin notes. 

Kevin thumps down the stairs and freezes at the sight of the little party gathered below. He’s wearing a flannel sweater and black sweats- no _MY NAME IS KEVIN!_ nametag in sight. “Oh, I know you,” He murmurs, giving Hyunjin a little nod. “Sorry for acting so strangely towards you before- it was solstice night, and I Saw a lot of things from you.” 

“Kevin is a Seer,” Jisung says flippantly, flopping down into an overstuffed couch and patting the seat beside it. Hyunjin slowly sits down, Felix pressed against his other side. Changbin and Chan settle onto the floor. “That means he can See bits and pieces of your past, present, and future. He can’t tell you about it directly, though- your brain would probably explode.” 

“Cool,” Hyunjin manages. “Can you do that, too?” Jisung scowls and fiddles with the little wooden ring on his forefinger. “No. That’s the price of being too attractive, I guess- can’t be a total package. Not fair to the rest of the world.” 

“He’s cheeky,” Felix whispers to Hyunjin. “I like him.” 

Hyunjin is secretly endeared, as well as slightly irritated. They’re supposed to be finding Seungmin. “He’s not a pet, dude. Don’t try anything funny.” 

Kevin clears his throat, settling himself into a loveseat adjacent to the couch. “So. Um. Where’s the button?” 

Felix raises an eyebrow, impressed. “You Saw that?” Kevin sniggers a little and pushes his glasses up his nose. “No. Jisung told me.” Felix makes a sour face, fishing the little button out of one of his many pockets and handing it over to the balding man. “Here.” 

“This part always freaks me out a little bit,” Changbin admits, his chin resting in his hands. “Esoteric stuff like this makes me want to turn on every light in the house and douse it in salt.” 

“I thought dwarves liked cold, dark places.” Felix says smoothly, and Changbin growls, his eyebrows pulling downwards. “We enjoy it more than your kind do, bird-boy.” 

“Shut up,” Jisung says absently, watching his older brother with rapt interest. “It’s starting now.” 

And it is- something is happening, anyways. The room seems to grow just a couple of shades darker, just a few degrees colder, and a heavy pressure settles into the room. It’s like being in a descending airplane, Hyunjin thinks, shifting his jaw from side to side in an attempt to clear his eardrums. 

Kevin seems to become a different person- he straightens up and smiles widely, a white milky cloud slipping over the surface of his eyes. His aura changes- it’s stronger, and tickles of the back of Hyunjin’s neck like a dozen infant spiders. 

“ _Hmmm_ ,” Kevin rasps, and his voice is like rocks sliding against each other- ancient and dusty and nearly painful to hear. “ _Now this is interesting. So many hands have touched this- which ones took your friend, I wonder_?” He pauses, rolling the button between the both of his hands as though it’s Play-Doh. 

“ _It’s an old being, that is clear. It shrouds itself in raven feathers and bog mud- I cannot see its face. A dark thing, it is- born from ash and clotted blood and the milk of a two-headed cow_.” 

“Do you know what it is?” Felix interjects, expression bordering on desperate. “Anything to find it, and the person it has taken?”

Kevin smiles, expression oddly reptilian and far away. “ _Patience, little one. I’m looking_.” 

They wait in silence, watching Kevin rock back and forth in the gaudy loveseat, his smile never wavering. Hyunjin bites at a stray hangnail, wincing a little as the sharp edge of his nail accidentally nicks his plush lower lip. 

Fast as light, Kevin reaches out with a nimble hand and swipes two of his fingers over Hyunjin’s cut, smearing blood across his hand. “What the fuck, dude!” Chan shrieks, standing up. Felix snaps his fingers, and Chan literally freezes in place, his shocked eyes the only part of his body that move. “Don’t interrupt the Seer,” Felix says coldly, before snapping his fingers again and allowing Chan to sit down shakily. “That could have disastrous consequences for everyone involved.” 

Kevin nods. “ _Very smart of you, faery_.” Hyunjin watches in equal parts disgust and interest as the Seer lifts his fingers up to his mouth and licks Hyunjin’s blood off of them, smacking his lips. “ _Oh, interesting_!” The Seer tilts his head, cloudy eyes locked with Hyunjin’s. “ _You are more important in this than you know, boy. When the time comes, don’t be afraid of change_.” 

“What?” Hyunjin says faintly, his nerves coming back in full force, but Kevin has already moved on, riding on the different streams of time like a gambler with nothing to lose. 

“ _The thing you seek has the child for selfish, selfish purposes. The bonegrinder, it is; cutting up special and magical things to sell to mankind. It does not take one shape, but many. It changes faces- it wears a mask_.” Kevin pauses, his rocking slowing. “ _It is not what it seems. It walks among you. It can enter your houses_.” 

“Where is it keeping Seungmin.” Hyunjin says lowly, his heart thudding loudly against his breast. 

Kevin leans towards him, expression wild and terrifyingly bright. “ _Deep deep deep underground, little creature. Where the dark things crawl, where the dark ones live. If you leave now, you may find him before he becomes dust for rotting humans to drink_.” 

“ _The mines_ ,” Chan breathes, a cold sweat beading against his hairline. “The old mines up north at Widow’s Peak. They’ve been closed for ages but the town draws water from a huge reservoir up there.” 

“Fuck!” Felix snarls, leaping to his feet. He’s shaking from head to toe. “We need to go. Now.” 

Kevin makes a clucking noise with his tongue. “ _One last thing, faery. You have the time to hear this out_.” Felix sits back down with a little hiss, every muscle in his body trembling, eyes darting towards the open door. 

“ _Things are not what they seem down there. The deep dark will try to seduce you. If it does, it will kill you. Do not let the bonegrinder touch you_.” Kevin stops rocking, and just like that, it’s over. Kevin coughs loudly a couple times before sliding his glasses back on. The color returns to the living room. “Well, that was interesting. Don’t think I’ll be sleeping much tonight.” 

“Jesus Christ.” Changbin mutters, face pale. 

“Hyunjin, get on. We’re going.” Felix grabs Hyunjin’s wrist and begins to stride towards the door, only to be stopped by Jisung. The shorter boy looks up at Felix, expression stony. “We’re coming with you. We know our way around the mines- we used to explore them before they were deemed too dangerous.” 

“Also, I’m part dwarf,” Changbin adds, unsteadily walking over to join Jisung. “I can navigate pretty well underground.” Everyone turns to look at Chan, who’s still sitting on the carpeted floor, a large pillow in his lap. “What? The only thing I can do is turn into a pig sometimes!”

Jisung raises an eyebrow and Chan gives in, tossing the pillow to the side as he stands. “Fine. I guess I’ll just use my fucking pig magic on the unspeakable evil lurking in the caves.” 

“You guys don’t have to do this,” Hyunjin says, throat tight. He’s scared. He’s so scared, and he doesn’t want these new friends of his to get injured- or worse. Chan sighs and brushes a hand lightly over Hyunjin’s shoulder. “Yes, we do. That’s what friends are for.” 

Fighting back the lump in his throat, Hyunjin nods, and they leave, Hyunjin on Felix’s’ back and the three town boys in Kevin’s shiny new Volkswagen Rabbit. ( “ _If you think that I’m letting you drive my new car, Jisung, you are so mistaken. I’ll drive, because I actually have a license_.”) 

The wind whips through Hyunjin’s hair as they fly above the truck, parallel to the dusty dim road that the truck follows hundreds of feet below them. _I promised you_ , Hyunjin thinks, steely resolve slowly melting away his panic and fear. _I’m not letting anything harm you_. He feels Felix shaking uncontrollably beneath him- he must be out of his mind with terror, the mines his worst nightmare. 

The further north they fly, the moister the air becomes, until Hyunjin’s hair is plastered to his face uncomfortably, the rolls of fog they speed through growing thicker and thicker. It smells like earth and stone and cold decay now- and Hyunjin is still not afraid. He should be, but he’s not. 

They land on a brown, grassy knoll, perhaps thirty feet from a cliff face with a gaping hole. Hyunjin slides off of Felix’s’ back and watches as the faery paces back and forth restlessly, casting wild-eyed looks at the yawning entrance to the mines. “Hey,” Hyunjin says, stilling Felix with a light touch of his fingers on the winged teenager’s shoulder. “Hey. It’s going to be okay. We have Changbin to guide us, and I promise, I swear that you’ll be fine.” 

“Promises are an old, strong thing,” Felix breathes, wiping some sweat off of his brow with the back of his hand. “You should know to be careful when creating them.” 

Hyunjin nods solemnly. “I know.” Felix stares at him with that piercing, knowing gaze again, and Hyunjin can feel something quiet and shadowy shrink back against it within him. Kevin- the Seer- he called me a little creature. Is he implying that I’m like Chan and Jisung? Not entirely human? 

Gravel crunches, and from the inky black of the surrounding woods, the shiny blue Volkswagen pulls slowly up the road until it rolls to a stop beside them. The three boys get out of the car along with Kevin, the headlights of the car still on. “I’ll be no use in there with you,” Kevin says nervously, taking his chunky glasses off and wiping them along the hem of his sweater. “I’ll wait out here and keep the car running.” 

“Okay,” Jisung nods, and Kevin pats his brother on the shoulder in a silent show of support. “I brought these.” Jisung holds out three large flashlights, and Hyunjin and Chan both take one immediately, clutching onto the plastic cases gratefully. Changbin shakes his head. “I don’t need one.” 

“What, you have fucking echolocation or something?” Chan jokes. Changbin sighs, looking incredibly embarrassed. “I told you, you’ll see. God.” He starts heading off towards the cave entrance, Jisung trailing behind him. Hyunjin hesitates. “Kevin- do you know exactly where Seungmin is being kept?” 

A sly little smile slithers across Kevin’s face, his eyes clouding briefly before clearing again. “Deep,” Kevin says with an air of finality, an apologetic expression now on his face. “I’m sorry. I can’t say more.” He presses the something wrapped in cloth into Hyunjin’s hand. “Don’t touch it,” Kevin murmurs. “It might hurt you. It’s pure silver- the things down there don’t like it.” It’s the little button, the boar snarling angrily across its surface. Hyunjin nods, stuffing the cloth into his jean pocket. 

“C’mon,” He says lowly, flicking on his flashlight and grabbing Felix gently by the wrist. “Let’s go get Seungmin back.” They trudge into the pitch black dark, the headlights of the truck fading until only the neon glow of their flashlights illuminates the uneven tunnel ahead of them- and something else. 

“You glow?” Chan guffaws, his laughter bouncing obnoxiously off of the stone walls and old wooden beams before he muffles his voice with the palm of his hand. And Changbin is glowing, for lack of better words- it’s a deep blue, bioluminescent glow, illuminating the short boy from within. It’s unsettlingly pretty- it reminds Hyunjin of strange sea creatures and deep, underwater things. 

“Shut up,” Changbin whispers, eyes closed. He pauses at a fork in the stone trail before taking the left-hand path. “This way leads deeper.”   
“How do you know?” Hyunjin asks curiously, and the black-haired boy shrugs. “Dunno. Just do. Call it dwarf intuition.” Chan barely bites back another laugh at that, and everyone shoots him a warning look. “Sorry. I’m nervous.” 

The deeper they venture, the colder it gets- an empty kind of cold, the stone walls pressing in around them. It’s quiet, save for the group’s heavy breathing and the water dripping down from the ceiling and down the walls. Felix is trembling and pressed close against Hyunjin’s side, his hand grasping at Hyunjin’s in a vice-like grip.

Hyunjin squeezes it gently, feeling a pang of pity for the faery who is clearly so out of his element. Felix squeezes back, all harsh language and stoic composure lost through fear and panic of being so far underground. 

Time stretches like saltwater taffy on a puller; long and thin and sickly sweet, until Hyunjin doesn’t know if they’ve been wandering the mines for minutes or hours. 

Eventually, Changbin comes to a dead stop, causing everyone behind him to stumble up against each other. “Here,” Changbin breathes, his fingers twitching at his sides. “It opens up here.” 

“I can feel something, too,” Felix says, voice unsteady. “It’s so _cold_.” 

Jisung stiffens, squaring his shoulders, and Chan cracks his knuckles, expression stony. Felix spreads his wings out protectively, and they make their way down a narrow, wet tunnel that seems to get smaller and smaller until it opens up into a massive, circular cavern. “The whole town could fit down here,” Hyunjin breathes, squinting into the faintly moonlit space, only able to discern vague shapes. 

“It’s big.” Jisung agrees, voice barely audible. “Turn off your flashlights and be quiet,” Changbin says, holding out a hand abruptly. “Listen. There are things down here with us.” Blood rushing through his head, Hyunjin closes his eyes and complies. At first he hears nothing- only their breathing, and the steady sound of slowly moving water – but then something splashes, breaking the calm, and then again, until Hyunjin can’t help but hear things moving through the water and scrabbling against stone and perhaps even whispering in a silky, mouldy language. 

And then he hears it- a faint cry, directly across the cavern. It’s Seungmin, Hyunjin knows it, feels it with every single fibre in his body. “ _Felix_ ,” He breathes, and the winged boy nods beside him. “I know.” 

Felix turns towards the town boys. “He’s across the cavern. I can hear him.”

“What do you want us to do?” Chan mutters, shifting from foot to foot. Felix sighs, long and shuddery. “I don’t know. I can only carry one person on my back, and crossing the cavern on foot with so many people definitely won’t end well.” 

A new voice speaks up, whispery and rotten. “ _You can all stay, if you want_.” Jisung screams, and everybody jumps. The voice giggles, light and high, the sound bouncing from wall to wall. “ _No need to be scared. I’ll take good good care of you. Suck the marrow from your bones, and the brain soup from you head. So tasty. So good_.” 

A papery whispering grows around them, overlapping and growing in noise until it’s nearly deafening, causing Hyunjin to press his hands over his ears, his legs trembling like dry leaves in the wind. 

Around him, his friends sink to their knees, and then to the ground, all of them twitching and writhing on the wet stone floor, gazes blank and terrified. “ _I’m showing them a make-believe story_ ,” says the voice. “ _It’s going to break their brains so I can drink drink drink it._ ”

A slow, dreadful horror washes over him, cold and impossibly deep, burrowing into his ears and plugging his chest. _Think, Hyunjin. Remember your promise. You promised somebody something important- what was it?_

That explosive, biting pain from earlier returns, but this time Hyunjin doesn’t fight it- he leans into it, muffling agonized whimpers into his hands as he doubles over. It flows and ebbs like the ocean, choppy and swelling in height and size. It hurts. It _hurts_. 

_Remember_ , that small, shadowy part of him screams, banging its fists against the inside of his chest. _Remember!_

( _Bits and pieces- a promise, a switch. A younger, chubby cheeked Seungmin peering through his window, quiet laughter muffled by layers and layers of blankets, whispered secrets- the scent of cherries and ocean brine- his parents fighting with his aunt- an empty crib_ -)

“Oh,” Hyunjin pants, hands digging into his sides. “Oh, _god_.” The deafening whispering ceases abruptly, the pain in his temples ebbing, and when he opens his eyes, he finds himself alone, ankle deep in freezing water, with stalagmites rising up around him like miniature cities. 

“Interesting,” That voice calls out again in a sing-song tone. “Do you know, now? Do you know who you are?” 

“No,” Hyunjin sobs, blindly staggering outwards, reaching out for Seungmin. “ _No_.” 

From the darkness the owner of the voice emerges. It’s what appears to be a small, pale girl, her lank hair dark and straight. She adjusts her sopping white dress, her hands neat and clean. She steps right up to Hyunjin, her feet moving soundlessly through the water. Her eyes are yellow and impossibly round, with slotted pupils. 

“ _You poor, poor thing_ ,” She murmurs, touching his wrist lightly. Hyunjin shudders at the wave of ice that moves up his arm, freezing his blood to slush.

“No,” he whispers, but makes no effort to wrench his arm away. He knows what’s coming, now. 

“ _Don’t cry_ ,” the girl says, her expression empty and devoid of warmth. She reaches up to brush the trail of frozen tears off of Hyunjin’s face. “ _You’re home now, little brother. You’ve been gone for far too long_.” 

“I’m not your brother,” Hyunjin pants, his lips tinged blue, frozen breath puffing out in little clouds into the air. “My name is Hwang Hyunjin. I’m eighteen. I live in Pennsylvania with my mother and father-,”

The girl gives him a blank smile. Her teeth are serrated and sharp. “ _I smell lies. You can smell it, too. Our real father is waiting for you. Back home. Further down. Deep deep_ deep.” 

He knows. He can feel it, feel the right-wrongness of it. _Unseelie_ , that shadow part whispers sadly. _That’s what we are_. 

That presentation from tenth grade is crystal clear, now. He and a blonde cheerleader had been forced to research Scottish folklore- specifically, faeries. Hyunjin and his friends had laughed about doing a presentation on faeries, as most fifteen-year-old boys tend to do, but what Hyunjin had looked up had been anything but cute. Seelie and Unseelie: two opposing fae courts- one light, one dark. One benevolent, one twisted and dark and evil. 

The Seelie court, ruled by Oberon and Tatiana, the fae queen, and the Unseelie court, ruled by a malignant evil so ancient it had no face to put a name to. 

His father. 

His mother walking into the room of her newborn son, unaware that her mortal child had been switched with an Unseelie one. A changeling. 

“ _You know now, don’t you_?” The girl gives him a close lipped smile. “ _Dark little prince- you’ve grown so strong, weaned on the milk and food of the human world_.” 

“Hyunjin!” A voice calls out, hoarse and ragged, and Hyunjin snaps out of his daze. A promise is a strong thing, older than the oldest magic. Some bonds simply cannot be broken, no matter how hard they’re bent. 

“Seungmin,” he cries, and the little girl snarls, her features twisting and morphing into something entirely inhuman. “ _DO NOT GO_ ,” she roars, reaching out for his wrist, but Hyunjin yanks his arm away this time, and runs. He runs in the direction of Seungmin’s voice, sobbing and breathless. 

“I’m over here!” Seungmin calls, voice a little louder. Hyunjin shifts his direction infinitesimally in his direction, stumbling through water and over loose stones, ignoring the shrill, guttural screaming following close behind him. 

Panting, he rounds a bend, and there he is- dirty and shivering and soaking wet, but it’s _Seungmin_ , his eyes wide and afraid and filling up with tears. Fingers trembling, he reaches out into the darkness, searching, feeling for the taller boy. Electricity arcs up his arm just as his fingertips brush smooth skin, causing a strangled noise to burst out of his throat. 

“Oh gosh, Hyunjin-,” Seungmin makes a muffled noise as Hyunjin crawls into Seungmin’s arms, shaking uncontrollably. 

“Do you know?” Hyunjin cries, fisting his hands into Seungmin’s tunic and pressing his face against the taller boy’s’ chest. “Do you know what I am?” Seungmin exhales and presses the side of his face against Hyunjin’s wet hair. “Yes. I knew since the day we met, ten or so years ago.” 

“I’m bad,” Hyunjin whispers.” I’m Unseelie.” Seungmin gives him a little shake. “You are not. Well- you are Unseelie. But you’re good. You _are_.”

“I don’t- I don’t remember everything,” Hyunjin wheezes. “It’s blocked- it hurts to try and think about.” 

“ **Faigh muin**!” Seungmin swears, his hold on Hyunjin tightening. “Old magic. It explains a lot.” Gently, he pulls Hyunjin upright, both of his hands supporting Hyunjin by the forearms. “Come on. We need to go.” 

“Felix- Felix and my friends are back there,” Hyunjin mumbles, dazed. “We can’t leave them.” Seungmin’s face tightens. “I know. I heard you all come in. That girl wouldn’t let me speak. She kept me in the dark.” His fingers give an involuntary flutter against Hyunjin’s skin. 

“I’m sorry,” Hyunjin says brokenly, flinching as the deafening wailing grows louder. Seungmin cups Hyunjin’s face in the palms of his dirty hands. “You have _nothing_ to apologize for. None of this is your fault, okay?” He murmurs, wiping a thumb across Hyunjin’s cheek. Hyunjin just nods, and Seungmin spreads out his wings, squinting out into the semi-darkness. “Let’s go.” 

He picks Hyunjin up slowly, carefully, as if he’s a fragile thing, a little ornament made of glass. It makes him want to cry harder. “My friends,” Hyunjin repeats again wetly, face burrowed into the crook of Seungmin’s neck. 

“Don’t worry,” Seungmin huffs, his wings pumping furiously, “My father is coming.” 

“Oberon?” Hyunjin squeaks, fear thrilling through him, and Seungmin nods slowly. “He’s going to be mad, and he doesn’t like you- for obvious reasons.” 

“This is some next level Romeo and Juliet shit,” Hyunjin mutters, and Seungmin lets out a little laugh. “Yes, it is. Hopefully without all the dramatic misunderstandings and death, though.” 

“Fingers crossed,” Hyunjin cheers weakly, and Seungmin makes a happy little noise, chest humming. It’s enough to keep the cold dark around and inside Hyunjin at bay- for the moment, at least. 

Cool air whips around the both of them as they move up up up through the tunnels, Seungmin making hairpin turn and nearly brushing up against the mine tunnels in his haste to flee. “ _Father is coming to claim you_!” The girl- Hyunjin’s sister- (god, his brain hurts-) snarls distantly. “ _He’s going to take you home_!” 

“Eat my ass!” Hyunjin screams back, and Seungmin barks out a surprised laugh, squeezing him a little tighter. "That's not your sister, you know." Seungmin whispers lowly. "It's just something nasty playing tricks with your mind." 

Hyunjin thinks, remembering Kevin's words from earlier with a mixture of relief and despair- " _It is not what it seems. It walks among you. It can enter your houses_.” 

 

The sky is growing light when Seungmin shoots out of the mine entrance, stumbling a few times as he lands. Hyunjin lets out a little _oomph_ as they hit the ground and roll, closing his eyes and holding onto Seungmin tightly. 

He opens his gaze to an eyeful of polished black leather shoes. He follows the shoes upwards, to an exquisite pin-striped suit, inlaid with rubies, past a fur-lined coat and then to the cold, condescending gaze of a handsome, narrow-faced man. 

Seungmin sighs, eyes tired. “Hello, Father.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i got my wisdom teeth pulled yesterday + thought i'd be in too much pain to write... but here we are fellas!!!!!!!!
> 
> what a wild ride, huh.... bet y'all never saw that coming...i'll try to finish this Bad Boy up ASAP,,, and thanks so much to everyone who left lovely + beautiful comments!!! i will respond to them once i level up!!! love u!!!!!!
> 
> ( im on twt @skyracha and on tumblr @seungmin!! comments + kudos are always Cherished)
> 
> (ps i listened to bastille's music the whole time while writing this)


	5. so that we won't run

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [ caveman grunts ] enjoy *crawls back into uni hell* 
> 
> ( shorter update, sorry! next ( LAST!!!!!!) chapter is gonna be a long one! im on twt @seungracha. come say hi or something <3 )

Hyunjin has never had a concrete understanding of what family was. Promises, he knew- they were black and white and small enough that he could cup them in his hands, hide them in his heart for later.

Family, though, is an undefined, hazy concept- nebulous enough that it evades Hyunjin’s full grip, slips through his fingertips like water. Is it the disjointed unit that he and his parents have become? Is it the warmth he feels sitting on top of the school roof with Minho and Jeongin after class? 

Hyunjin doesn’t really know, doesn’t really want to try to know at this point, and looking at Seungmin’s father, he thinks that maybe Seungmin feels the same way.

The tall, imposing figure standing over them looks about as far from fatherly as one can get.

“Hello, child.” Oberon says, his mouth pressed into a flat, taut line.

He does not look very pleased to see either of them- but then again, Hyunjin suspects that he probably never looks pleased. He’s flanked on both sides by what must be servants of some sort- they too are dressed expensively and beautifully, in thick silk robes and dazzling gold jewelry. The three of them stand out like tall garden flowers among the weeds that is the dead brush surrounding the mine entrance.

Seungmin sits up with a grunt, an arm still slung around Hyunjin’s shoulders. Every inch of his body aches with a deep, bone scraping heaviness. Sleep sounds _incredible_ right about now, but the alarm bells ringing in his head clear the heavy fog away.

“Where have you taken the others?” Oberon flicks a dismissive hand in the direction of the town. “I told the servants to take them home. I highly doubt that they will remember much of this encounter- the presence of many fae tend to make those with mortal blood quite forgetful.”

“Thank you,” Hyunjin says, strangely grateful that his friends won’t have to remember whatever that thing in the cavern had forced them to see. Oberon’s eyes flick over to him, hard black jewels of permafrost and cold steel.

“He smells like Unseelie.” It’s more of a statement than it is a question. Seungmin’s arm tightens around his shoulder, and the smell of cherries fills the air, heavy and cloying. Hyunjin swallows back the lump of sudden shame in his throat, his cheeks reddening.

Seungmin clenches his jaw and lifts his chin to meet his father’s gaze head on. “Half Unseelie. Half human.”

Oberon tilts his head, silky white hair falling across his shoulders, and with a little start of surprise Hyunjin notices the two small, barely noticeable horns protruding from the side of the faerie king’s head. They’re clear like ice and slightly curled, much like ram horns are. 

Oberon is objectively beautiful; he possesses a cold, ageless, untouchable type of beauty that may very well blacken the ends of Hyunjin’s fingers with frost should he reach out to touch him.  
“We know who his father is, then-I wonder who the bitch is.”

“Don’t speak about Hyunjin like he’s not here.” Seungmin lets out a little snarl, lips twisting into something feral and dark. “And don’t talk about his family like that.”

_I wonder who the bitch is._

Hyunjin shivers, feeling embarrassingly exposed under the Seelie king’s heavy stare. His father isn’t really his father; then- and neither is his mother.

In hindsight, it explains a lot- the blank, detached way his father would look at him sometimes, the slight hesitation in his mother’s fingers before they would reach out to link with his- their guts warning them of something their brain couldn’t possibly know.

 _So I was the reason for their fighting. They didn’t know it, and I didn’t know it, at the time- but it was me._ His mother’s obsessive-compulsiveness, his father’s infidelity and frivolous gambling- was that his doing, too?

_I don’t want to think about that right now._

Seungmin stands, pulling Hyunjin up with him. “A Seer said something about a bonegrinder. Do you know of any of our kind by that name?”. 

Oberon rolls his tongue and lets out a trilling sound that makes Hyunjin’s head ache. It’s a mix of a birdsong and war cry, high and reedy.

“Bonegrinder...that’s not the right name. Sounds like a name mortals give their antiheroes; too flashy, too tacky. Let’s see... you remember the stories your mother told you of duine cnàimh, yes?”

Hyunjin doesn’t miss the minute tremble that ripples across Seungmin’s skin, doesn’t miss the sharp breath the faerie prince sucks in. “The bone man,” Seungmin murmurs. A small bead of sweat rolls down his temple and stops at the bow of his lower lip, and Hyunjin has to physically restrain himself from reaching out and wiping it away.

“So you know him?” Hyunjin asks instead, crossing his arms self-consciously as Oberon shoots him another vacant look.

Seungmin nods jerkily. “He’s like... your bogeyman? Your monster under the bed. All Seelie and Unseelie children grew up on stories about him. He’s a butcher of the worst kind- a cradle robber, snatching fae children from their beds and cutting them up for mortals to imbibe.”

“ _Imbibe_?” Hyunjin squeaks. “Why?”

“Fae flesh has a wide range of benefits for human beings,” Oberon interjects smoothly, “Some of those benefits including perks such as immortality and the ability to converse with garden plants, so you can see why it’s in high demand among those who are aware of our existence and are rich enough to partake in it.”

“It’s one of the reasons we are unable to cross the boundary lines of this town,” Seungmin says, expression a little lost. “It’s too keep _us_ safe, too.”

Oberon hums, low and affirming. “Which is why you need to come back home. The duine cnàimh will take you if you wander around this side of the Veil, as I cannot stay in this iron world for long.”

Seungmin stiffens, his expression freezing over. The blank, uncaring look in his eyes is disturbingly similar to his father’s. “I won’t leave Hyunjin. I _can’t_. Don’t pretend like you don’t understand.”

“The first thing you were taught as a child was to learn from the mistakes of others and to not repeat them. Has the human world eaten away your common sense? Seelie and Unseelie do not mix well, and Seelie and men do not mix at all. I will not let you disgrace my father and the fathers that came before him.”

When Seungmin speaks, his voice is cold; the chill of it causes the hairs on the nape of Hyunjin’s neck to stand straight up. “Then I will leave. Put one of my other brothers in line for the throne- it means nothing to me.”

Oberon’s face darkens, and Hyunjin can feel the tension between the two in the air- a miniature thunderstorm, growing rapidly. “You cannot stay in the human world forever. It will slowly kill you. It will poison you- and when it does, you will come crawling back to me.”

“I’d rather _die_ ,” Seungmin retorts, and Oberon actually snarls, his face splitting into three, fractured and horrifying. The sight of it plucks at the string of Hyunjin’s sanity, and he recoils against Seungmin, eyes unfocused and terrified. 

Seungmin looks over at him and curses. “For fucks sake- thank you for the information and the lovely talk, father. We can reconvene at some other time.” The fae steers Hyunjin towards the cliff face facing the town.

“I suppose so,” Oberon growls. “Take my advice- leave the bastard child with his own kind. He will bring no luck to you.”

Seungmin turns to look at him. “He has, though. The bastard child you speak of has brought me more luck this summer than I’ve had my entire life.”

Hyunjin covers his mouth to hide his stupid, giddy smile.

Oberon says nothing as Seungmin collects Hyunjin in his arms and flies off, red wings stark against the lightning sky. One of his servants steps forward, brow creased.

“My lord- there will be a death in that town within the next few days. The Nun has foreseen it in the entrails- are you willing to let your son go, should it be him that perishes?”

“I cannot change Fate,” Oberon murmurs, watching his son disappear into the town, into the iron cage. The duine cnàimh lurks there, foul and ancient, and he is powerless to stop it. “No matter how hard I would try.” The servant bows his head.

Oberon snaps his fingers. “Come. My strength is waning- I will cross over and watch this unfold from the other side.” 

With one last glance at the town, Oberon turns and walks into the forest. The trees bow and part for him, rustling in excitement. The servants exchange a loaded look and follow their king into the woods.

***

The sun rises in the morning to greet an abandoned Jeep, doors unlocked and key still in the ignition.

***

Seungmin doesn’t say anything until after they’ve both tumbled through Hyunjin’s bedroom window and caught their breath- and even then, Hyunjin has to speak first. He snags a fistful of Seungmin’s sleeve, fisting his hand in the buttery cloth.

“Hey,” Hyunjin breathes, “Are you okay? That standoff with your father back there was pretty intense.”

The fae lets out a long, heavy sigh. “My _father_ is pretty intense. I’m sorry for the way he spoke to you.”

Hyunjin laughs. It’s not a nice laugh- it’s ugly and forced and fake. “He’s not wrong, though. I am all of the things he said I was.”

 _I wonder who the bitch is_. 

Seungmin hisses and slaps his hands gently against the sides of Hyunjin’s face, squishing his cheeks together.

“You are more than what lies in your blood, _leannan_. The only person who gets to define you is yourself.” Seungmin’s eyes are warm and tired and fixed only on Hyunjin. It’s enough to make Hyunjin’s heart hurt. The words and that gaze make something kick in Hyunjin’s chest, make him lean towards Seungmin like a moth to an open flame.

There’s a thousand things to do, a hundred thousand things to worry about- but Hyunjin is _tired_. He’s tired, and he might be- he might just be-

_The smell of crushed grass and cherry wine-_

“Seungmin,” Hyunjin whispers, shivering at the warmth radiating off of the fae’s skin, “Please stay. I’m tired.”

Seungmin swallows hard, adam’s apple bobbing, and drops his hands from Hyunjin’s face. He looks exhausted as well. “I- Okay. We should probably check up on your friends, though. My father makes very vague promises.”

“’Kay,” Hyunjin echoes, and crawls into his bed, eyes heavy with sleep. Seungmin hesitates, and Hyunjin laughs softly, acutely aware of Leehwa sleeping in the room across the hall. “Come on. I promise I won’t bite or anything. I got my rabies shot ages ago.”

“Rabies?” Seungmin mumbles, eyebrow quirked. “You mean the ice-creatures that burrow into our mountains and kill our livestock?”

“No, I was trying to be funny- never mind.” Hyunjin snickers and pulls Seungmin onto the bed, being careful not to pin his wings under the heavy comforter. It’s a little strange going to sleep when the sun is waking up, casting amber light on the walls of the bedroom, but Hyunjin doesn’t really mind. 

He definitely doesn’t mind when Seungmin carefully places an arm over Hyunjin’s shoulder, his hand resting high on his ribcage. “Are you still upset?” Seungmin whispers, his breath tickling the back of Hyunjin’s neck. “Your heart is beating almost as fast as a bird’s wings.”

Hyunjin lets the words hang in the air, feels them dissipate into the air like fog on a sunny day. “No,” He says finally, “I’m not upset. It’s not that.” And maybe Seungmin understands, or maybe he doesn’t, because he says nothing else.

(But he pulls himself closer to Hyunjin, and their legs tangle under the quilts, so maybe he does, after all.)

 

_Hyunjin dreams, again. Of butterflies, and the garden- something familiar._  
_The garden is boring. Auntie Leehwa’s house is boring. Hyunjin kicks at the gnarled root of an oak tree sullenly. It’s just like mommy and daddy to fight again and make mommy take him to Auntie Leehwa’s._

_A butterfly, vivid and yellow, lands on the tip of Hyunjin’s nose, causing the six-year old to giggle._

_“Hey!”_

_Hyunjin turns to the voice and the butterfly flits away, over the garden fence. There’s a boy in the gap between two slats of wood. His face is pretty, and his smile is wide. Hyunjin wrinkles his nose and presses his hands to his stomach to keep the sudden kaleidoscope of butterflies in his stomach at bay._

_“Are you talking to me?” He asks, creeping towards the gap in the weathered wooden wall. The air becomes charged with static electricity and the tentative promise of things to come. The strange boy smiles at him through the fence, eyes twinkling. He holds out a sun-kissed hand._

_“Hi. I’m Seungmin. Wanna play?”_

_“I’m Hyunjin, and my mommy and my auntie told me that I can’t leave the garden,” Hyunjin confides, lower lip jutting out into a pout._

_Seungmin frowns, brow knitted together. After a few long moments, he looks up, brown eyes bright. “What if they don’t know that you’re gone?” Hyunjin points towards the kitchen window, where the adults are talking inside. “They can see me from here.’_

_The redhead screws up his face and says something long and old that make Hyunjin’s teeth ache, and suddenly he’s outside the fence, crouching right next to the strange boy. “How-,” Hyunjin gasps, and Seungmin laughs. “Look!"_

_The redhead points at the gap in the fence, and when Hyunjin looks through, he can see himself dozing against the big oak tree. When he looks down at his hands they’re milky and wobbly- almost transparent._

_“How did you do that?” Hyunjin exclaims. His eyes nearly bug out of his head when he sees the two small, cherry coloured wings resting against the other boy’s back._

 _“Are you a superhero?”_

_Seungmin giggles. “I don’t know what that is.”_

_Hyunjin rolls around in the long grass, pretending to shoot webbing out of his wrists just like Spiderman. “Superheroes are people with special powers that nobody else has! They save lots and lots of people.” He leans in until his nose is almost flush with Seungmin’s. “I wanna be a superhero when I grow up.”_

_Seungmin scratches the back of his neck. “Maybe I am one of those super-super thingies, then.”_

_“Can you fly?” Hyunjin says reverently, eyeing the fluttering wings. Seungmin blushes._

_“No, not yet. My father says that I’m not grown up enough to try yet, because I’d probably fall and break my neck.”_

_Hyunjin frowns. “Oh. But you’ll be able to fly one day?”_

_Seungmin nods eagerly. “Yup!”_

_“Hyunjin!” His mother shrieks. Hyunjin flinches at the hysterical edge to his mother’s voice. He peeks through the fence again. His mommy is shaking his limp body, her face twisted. “Leehwa! He’s not breathing!”_

_Hyunjin panics. “Hey,” He shouts, grabbing onto Seungmin's shoulder and shaking it. “Put me back! This isn’t fun anymore.”_

_Seungmin pales and nods, speaking those strange, throbbing words again, and Hyunjin shoots back into his own body, coughing and sputtering and-_

_-and Hyunjin dreams of strange things, half shaped things, but this time he knows who they are. He can hear their whispers, feel their hands brushing against his forehead, pressing against his arms. His family greets him in the only way they know how, wordless and in this dark place, Hyunjin is soft and dry, nothing more than spider-silk._

_“Hwang Hyunjin,” says a man with a voice as dark and as thick as raw oil, “We finally meet.”_

Hyunjin brushes the Unseelie off of his shoulders and stands ramrod straight, eyes searching the darkness around him for the source of the voice. This darkness- this man- doesn’t scare Hyunjin. There’s something strangely comforting about the blackness, something comforting and steady in the way it slips around his feet.

_“Who are you?” Hyunjin asks- a stupid question. He already knows._

_Laughter, like two boulder grinding against each other. “You know who I am.” The Unseelie king has the same rolling accent that Oberon does- ancient and reminiscent of the earth. Hyunjin crosses his arms._

_“What do you want?”_

_The Unseelie king hums, and his court echoes it until the dark is filled with a loud hum reminiscent of a beehive. “To warn you about the duine cnàimh. It’s been spinning a web and you’re walking in the centre of it. Go back home, Hyunjin. Tomorrow.”_

_“To Pennsylvania?” Hyunjin says, incredulous. “I can’t just leave- I can’t leave my friends behind with this thing in town.” It’s just so typical for this primordial and immensely powerful being to just appear in his dream and think he can boss him around. What a dad move._

_The voice takes on a wheedling edge. “Let’s make a promise. If you leave, I’ll tell you who your mother is. Your real mother.”_

_The fae do not lie often, and the promises they make are woven so tightly into their bones that breaking them will break them as well. Hyunjin knows this, knows that the Unseelie king will tell him the truth. But what if I don’t want to know? Does he want to put a name and a face to the woman who gave him away?_

_There’s something else. He hasn’t known the fae for long, but they’re close enough to humans to behave similarly- and Hyunjin can tell there’s something else his father wants from him. So he shakes his head. “No. I’m staying until I find a way to get rid of the dune- the whatever-and after that I’m staying until the end of summer.”_

_Silence. “It’s your choice, but I will warn you- staying means that someone will die.”_

_Hyunjin’s heart skips a beat. Someone will die._

_Crushed grass and cherry wine and_

_Soft red feathers and_

_A very old promise_ \- He snaps back to reality, chest heaving, shirt slicked to his body with a cold sweat. SM is yowling from somewhere in the room, high and agitated.

Seungmin sits up, half-asleep. “Hyunjin?”

He’s not paying attention. _Someone will die_. It loops through his head, growing louder and louder. _Someone will die_. Everything is too much, it’s too much for him to process- his brain is surely starting to melt like ice cream, it’s so hot. The walls of his bedroom bend and press inwards, boxing him in. He needs to get out and find open space, he needs to think-

“Hyunjin, it’s okay. You’re okay,” Seungmin whispers, eyes wide, hands above Hyunjin’s shoulders as the shorter teenager shakes and kicks out, tangling the bedsheets. The redhead’s palm is cool on Hyunjin’s feverishly warm forehead, and Hyunjin leans into it before pulling back as if burnt. Seungmin’s expression is confused. Surely he can hear how fast his hummingbird heart is going- if Hyunjin were a machine, he’d be smoking.

“Can I touch you?” Seungmin asks. When Hyunjin shakes his head no, he nods, slipping out of bed to throw open the windows, letting the breeze carry the afternoon sun into the room. They sit on the bed, Seungmin making sure to keep a careful distance. SM creeps out from behind the laundry basket and leaps up onto the bed, eyeing Seungmin warily. 

Fae don’t lie often, but they _can_ , so maybe- maybe the Unseelie king is just trying to get him to leave. Hyunjin chews on the inside of his cheek, agitated. There’s a decision to be made here, and he doesn’t know which one is the right one. Hyunjin thinks of Chan, thinks of the town boys, reminds himself of the ethereal being in the woods. There’s a kind of wild beauty to Penn, and he doesn’t want the bone man to destroy that, to carve out the magic for it’s own profit.

 _I’ll stay._ He takes a deep, calming breath, noticing the way the sun warms his face. _I’m going to stay, at least until this is all over._ SM settles himself into Hyunjin’s lap like a fat, furry baby.

“I don’t think he likes me,” Seungmin says, glaring back at the black cat, “Which is fine. I don’t like him either.”

Hyunjin grins. “You’re just jealous that I let him sit in my lap.” 

Seungmin raises an eyebrow, the tips of his ears going pink. His tone is light, but his eyes are still worried, still watching Hyunjin carefully. “Why would I be jealous?”

Oh. Maybe Hyunjin’s reading into this- this strange tension too much. He can feel it, at least- it’s like standing on the edge of a cliff barefoot, or like trying to balance a blade on the tip of a finger. Hyunjin doesn’t understand this new feeling just yet- can’t put the right label on it. But at times like this, when Seungmin is looking at him like he holds the key to something special, Hyunjin thinks that Seungmin might know what it is.

 _Don’t ask about it. Don’t do anything about it._ What if he’s wrong? What if Seungmin is just kind and giving and Hyunjin is just projecting his own feelings? There’s a selfish, greedy part of Hyunjin that wants to cup Seungmin in his hands and keep him there, cradled close to his chest, entirely his.

(That will never happen, because Seungmin is water, and water is fluid and ever-moving and belongs to no one. )

“Because SM and I have a bond- ordinary fae princes like you would never understand.” Hyunjin jokes instead, brushing his fingers over the back of the redhead’s hand gently, thanking him silently. Seungmin smiles, relief clear on his face.

They both freeze at the sound of the doorbell. SM makes an irritated grumbling noise and crawls under the quilts. 

“Was Leehwa expecting anyone today?” Seungmin asks quietly, eyes darting towards the bedroom door. Hyunjin swallows around the lump in his throat. Surely more sinister things wouldn’t come through the front door 

“I don’t know- I don’t think so.” 

Seungmin jerks his head. “Let’s go check it out.” Hyunjin notes the sheen of sweat across his face, sees the sickly tint to his skin. _You cannot stay in the human world forever_ , Oberon had said. What about this side of the Veil made fae so sick? The iron, perhaps; or maybe it was due to the dwindling amount of truly wild places. 

_I’ll ask him about that later_. 

Hyunjin stumbles after him and treads close to the taller man, hot on his heels. The house is silent, making their steps seem almost explosively loud as they walk down the hallway. Hyunjin casts a nervous look at Leehwa’s bedroom as they creep by. Seungmin’s wings rustle softly. 

The doorbell rings again, making Hyunjin jump. “ _Shit_!” Heart racing, he sneaks up to the door and peers through the peephole. 

“Oh, thank _god_ ,” Hyunjin says, and swings the door wide open. Three wide-eyed teenagers stand in the doorway. Seungmin deflates. 

“Hi,” Chan says, “We just wants to make sure that you were still alive.” There’s something a little bit haunted in Chan’s eyes, like there’s something ghosting the corners of his memory. Jisung peeks out from behind the two other boys, eyes round. “Can we have pie?” Hyunjin laughs at the hopeful glint in the blue haired boys’ eyes and nods. 

“I think Leehwa made some the other day- come in.” 

It’s mid-afternoon, but the house is oddly quiet, the lights off. Light spills through the kitchen windows, filtered by the lace curtains. As he opens the fridge and rummages around for the pie, Hyunjin can’t help but find it a little strange that Leehwa hasn’t checked up on him at all. _She usually phones if she’s out._

 

“So last night was super fucking weird,” Jisung states, sticking an index finger right in the middle of the pie, much to the horror of Changbin and Chan, “But I can’t remember the worst of it.” 

Seungmin nods, eyeing the pie warily. “It was very fucking weird. You’re more human than you are not, though, so your memories of yesterday will eventually fade away.” 

Hyunjin drums his fingers onto the granite countertop. Will his memories of this summer fade away, then? Will he wake up one day unable to recognize Seungmin’s face? _No_ , he thinks. _I’ll remember_. Just how much of him is human, exactly? What parts of him are Unseelie? 

Changbin huffs and smacks Jisung’s hand away from the pie “I’ll be honest- I don’t really want to remember any of what happened in the caves.” He flicks Hyunjin on the arm. “As long as you’re fine- both of you- I’m fine with living in blissful ignorance.” 

“ _Hey_ ,” Chan whispers to Seungmin, voice barely audible over Jisung and Changbin’s squabbling. “Did you sleep with Hyunjin last night?” Seungmin reddens. 

“Pardon me?” 

“You look like you just woke up- your hair is all rumpled.” Chan narrows his eyes. “Wait a minute. Did you think that I meant-.” 

Seungmin cuts him off. “ _I would like some pie_.” 

“Seungmin-,” Chan laughs, eyes dancing, “You-,” 

“Pie,” Seungmin says aggressively, pushing a plate towards Hyunjin, who complies, an embarrassed little grin on his face. What an odd sight they must make- five boys stand around the kitchen counter, hair messy and eyes tired, eating cold pie for breakfast. 

Jisung shoves an impressive forkful of berries and flaky dough into his mouth. “You know, it’s super quiet in the woods today- like I’m talking no birds singing, no weird things scurrying around. Is there another solstice or something today?” 

Seungmin and Hyunjin exchange a look. “No,” Seungmin says slowly, “There’s nothing special about today.” A sobering knot of dread twists in the pit of Hyunjin’s stomach. 

Something is wrong. 

He pushes his plate of pie away. “I’ll be right back- I’m just going to check on Leehwa.” Jisung makes an affirmative sound, cheeks filled with pie. 

_You’re probably overreacting. The cats are acting normal- she’s probably just sleeping in, or shopping._

He takes the stairs two at a time, hands sliding up the smooth oak bannister. “Aunt Leehwa?” Silence. Hyunjin knocks twice against her bedroom door. 

Nobody answers. A string chorus shrieks in the back of Hyunjin’s head as he tries the doorknob and finds it unlocked. A wrongness settles in the hallway, heavy and thick, clogging Hyunjin’s head. 

“Aunt Leehwa- I’m coming in, okay?” 

His stomach lurches as the door swings open to reveal the bedroom. A high, alarmed cry spills from his mouth unbidden. The room has been turned completely upside down- the drawer are tipped over, their contents spilled on the floor, and the sheets on the bed are shredded. 

The far wall is streaked with what looks like charcoal. Three words are drawn crudely on the wall in scratchy, wobbly writing. 

 

T̴̡̡̢̨̛̹̟̠̼͕̘̦͍͆̊̃͝i̷͔͖͇͍̰̤͋̚m̴̢̡̨͕̫̠̠̣̜̳̠̃̓̋͠ͅͅȩ̵̖̹͇̜̼͚̫̯̖̹͇͓̝̬͊̀͐̈́̕ ̸̡̛͔͔͍̙̝̼̭̙̩̅̓̿̆̈́̋͘͝͝ì̶̬̗͌̊͂̔͐̀͊̌̿̽̉̓̉͝s̴̺̪͉̺͉̖͈̙͒̌͊̉̀̄̍̈́͌̚͜ ̸̛̜͖̖̖͊͌ǘ̸͖͂̈́̊̃̈́͌̉͋̄́͂̈́͝p̵̟̟̞̳̟͚̮͍̖̻̞̭͚̓̄͊̅̇̃̉̈̓̾͘͠

 

Time is up.  
_Someone will die_. 

Hyunjin steps backward and claps a hand over his mouth, nauseated. It’s been in the house. The others charge up the stairs and freeze behind Hyunjin. 

Chan sucks in a sharp breath. “Oh, _fuck_.” 

Seungmin steps around Hyunjun and kneels on the floor, eyes narrowed. “There’s no blood- and I can smell old magic.” He looks up, apologetic. “It’s the duine cnàimh- it must have come last night, while you were looking for me. I don’t know why I was unable to pick up on it.” SM and YG poke their heads into the room curiously before turning and trotting back down the hallway. 

 

Hyunjin makes a choked little noise. Leehwa doesn't deserve this- she's been nothing but kind to Hyunjin. He stares down at the floor, tears prickling at the corners of his vision. They can’t go to the police with this, can’t go to Oberon for help. Jisung wraps an arm around his shoulders, a warm presence. 

_You could ask your father_ , a little voice in the back of his head whispers. _If you strike the right bargain with him, maybe he could get rid of the bone man_. 

_Shut up,_ he thinks to himself. _I trust the Unseelie king about as far as I can throw him._ “Why didn’t the cats do anything?” He says instead. “They’re acting like nothing happened..”

Changbin hesitates. “Maybe… maybe it was somebody they knew.” He picks at a frayed thread on the cuff of his sweater. “Somebody close to you or Leehwa.” 

The only people in town that he’d consider himself close to are the three boys standing beside him, and there’s no way in _hell_ that any of them would be capable of doing something like this. As for Seungmin- well, he’s not the bone man; he’s Seelie through and through. Hyunjin can feel the impression of the redhead’s magic- it’s like sunlight and wet earth. It’s pure. And Leehwa- Leehwa just has the cats. And Lowson. 

( _Why are you always here? Are you and Leehwa dating or something_?”

 _“I supply her with the necessary ingredients for her to do her work,” Lowson replies smoothly_. )

“Lowson,” Hyunjin mutters. “Lowson has practically been living here.” 

Chan raises an eyebrow. “The guy who runs the pharmacy?” 

“Yeah,” Hyunjin says, the puzzle pieces slowly clicking into place. “He also supplies Leehwa with items from across the Veil for spells, so it would make sense for it to be him. I thought- I thought that they were _dating_.” 

“I don’t understand,” Seungmin mutters, wiping a hand across the ugly charcoal letters. “I would have smelled magic that strong on him. When I first saw him I thought he looked a little bit like my father, but otherwise he seemed entirely human to me.”

Changbin gestures at the black smear on the wall. “What the fuck are we supposed to do? We’re in way over our heads here.” 

“No, we’re not.” Seungmin crosses his arms and looks at the teenagers in front of him appraisingly. “ The duine cnàimh is strong, yes- but I doubt it’s ever had to face a fae prince, an Unseelie, a half-dwarf, a shapeshifter and _Jisung_ all at once.” 

( “Hey!” Jisung exclaims. ) 

“Wait, Hyunjin is _Unseelie_?” Chan says incredulously. “Why am I always the last one to hear about shit like this?” 

Hyunjin sighs. “It’s a long story. We’ll talk about it later.” 

Jisung shrugs and turns back to Seungmin, unfazed. “What are we going to do if we find Lowson and it turns out to be him?” 

Seungmin bares his teeth in a sharp, wicked smile. “Then we’ll _kill_ him.”


	6. a bird without wings

The house is empty, sometimes, when the lady and the boy leave to go shopping or to collect berries. SM doesn’t mind that, because both the boy and the lady are very loud and he likes to doze in the pools of sunlight by the windows sometimes. 

When the boy arrived, he brought light with him- a special kind of light that made SM feel safe and comfortable and warm. Lately, though, that warmth has been tinged with a cold. SM doesn’t like it. 

Doesn’t like change.

Today feels different. There’s a current of _something_ in the air that makes his fur prickle, something that makes the tip of his tail twitch back and forth irritably. There’s been something not quite right for a while now. 

SM watches the boys leave from the attic window, and he feels sad. He feels about as sad as a cat be, which is a lot. Change, the cat thinks, watching the not-quite-boy spread his wings and shake them out. _Change, soon_. 

***

They take Leehwa’s car, because Seungmin definitely can’t handle the weight of four teenage boys, no matter how big his wings are. 

Jisung grabs the keys first and twirls them around his finger. “I can drive! Kevin has been letting me practice.” 

Chan steps up and snatches the keys from the younger boys’ hands. “I’ve failed my driving test five times, but at least I know how to drive.” Jisung shoots him a nasty look and keeps silent until they’ve all packed into the car. 

“If you’re at the wheel, we’re definitely dying today.” 

Changbin turns around in the passenger seat and chucks the younger boy under the chin. “Is Jisungie sad that he won’t get to drive a car into a cornfield again?” 

“That was one time!” Jisung wails, head in his hands. Hyunjin smiles from his spot in the back seat, squished between Seungmin and the blue-haired boy. There’s a baseball bat tucked between Jisung’s tanned legs- Hyunjin’s not entirely sure how effective it’ll be against an ancient, evil creature, but it’s worth a shot. 

Chan lets out a little whoop when he manages to get the car to start. “Let’s go!” He cries, cursing under his breath as he puts the car in reverse, narrowly avoiding a collision with an old oak tree. 

Changbin cackles, unafraid. 

_Someone will die_. Hopefully that won’t be because of Chan’s driving. Just in case, Hyunjin sends up a quiet little prayer to whoever is up there. 

Seungmin shifts beside him, squinting at something out of the car window. “Hey,” He says, “Stop the car.”

Chan looks over his shoulder. “What?” He peers into the rearview mirror. “Oh, you’ve _got_ to be fucking kidding me.” 

Lee Felix drops down from the skies and lands the ground running, stumbling a little as he does so. Chan slams on the brakes, expression sour. “Does he have to come along?” 

Seungmin wrinkles his nose. “He’s the one with the most experience in… killing things, so yes.” 

“He doesn’t really _look_ like he's capable of killing somebody,” Jisung says, ogling the fae as he trots up to the car, panting and out of breath. “I’m pretty sure I saw his face on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.” 

Seungmin lets out a huffing laugh. “You probably did.” 

Felix opens the passenger door. “Hello,” He says breathlessly, “I heard that you dumb fucks were in need of my assistance.” 

“No, we don’t,” Chan grunts, shifting the gear back into drive as the fae clambers into the seat next to him. “We were doing just fine without you, thanks.”

“Have you ever killed a god before?” Felix asks, a bemused little smile on his face. “‘Cause I did. Cut them right open and stole the gold that poured out of its guts.” 

Chan pales a little, but says nothing. Felix leans back into the seat, a satisfied smirk on his face. 

The drive to town is only a twenty minute drive, but time itself seems to slow down to a snail's pace, dragging on and on as the car eats up the dry, dusty dirt road beneath them. 

“Is anyone else seeing that?” Jisung asks, rolling down the window and staring up at the sky with wide eyes. “I hope nobody does and I’m just crazy, because that really, _really_ doesn’t look good.” 

Hyunjin leans over Seungmin to look out the window and freezes. The skies are boiling, churning out angry black clouds, swirling over the town like a blanket. Even from inside the car, he can hear the wind pick up, hear it whistle through the trees lining the road. 

“Well, fuck,” Changbin grumbles. “I guess it knows we’re coming.” 

Seungmin hums. “Maybe, maybe not. If it took Leehwa, then I’m pretty sure it’s not trying to stay subtle anymore.” 

“The townspeople,” Hyunjin says, settling back into his seat, “Will they see what we see?” 

Felix answers for Seungmin, turning in his seat to speak. “Human minds are interesting- if people see something that would break their brains and cause them to go fucking batshit crazy, their brains alter the way that something is perceived, make it more palatable.” He pauses to look out the window. “Basically, they see a watered down version of what we see- something that makes sense to them.” 

“God, I wish that was me,” Jisung groans. “We’re all going to fucking die, dude.” 

“ _I_ won’t,” Felix snickers, “And maybe if Chan finally admits that he thinks I’m hot, none of you will, either.” 

“What?” Chan squawks, hands jerking on the wheel. The car swerves onto the shoulder of the road, and everybody screams, alarmed. “I do _not_?” 

“You totally do. I’m irresistible.” 

Chan sputters, the tips of his ears turning pink. “I don’t- you aren’t-,” He reaches over and blindly slaps the dashboard until the radio crackles to life. _In my life there's been heartache and pain  
I don't know if I can face it again_-,” 

Hyunjin can’t stop the laugh that bubbles past his lips. “Good song choice. Really fits the mood.” 

“I will crash this car,” Chan mutters, knuckles tight on the wheel. “I swear to God I’ll drive into the next ditch I see.” 

“ _Can't stop now, I've traveled so far to change this lonely life_ -,”

“ _I wanna know what love is_ ,” Jisung shouts, kicking the back of Chan’s seat, “ _I want you to show meeeee!_ ” 

“Are you going to serenade me with this mortal love song?” Felix asks. Chan looks like a tomato, face cherry-red and gaze fixed straight on the road ahead. Seungmin hides a smile behind his hand. 

_I wanna feel what love is_  
_I know you can show me_!

“You know,” Changbin muses, raising his voice to be heard over the tinny music, “If we actually manage to survive this, we’re totally going to a karaoke place.” 

“What’s a karaoke?” Seungmin asks. “Is that food?” 

Hyunjin laughs. “It’s not food. You’ll see.” 

It’s a gentle little promise, and Seungmin beams at it. 

The first thing Hyunjin notices once they all get out of the car is the smell. It’s the smell of rotting, dead things, and ozone. It’s sickly sweet and pungent and dangerous, enough to make Chan gag and Felix cover his nose with his arm. 

“We should probably go indoors to figure out a plan of action,” Changbin proposes, already moving towards a stout building. “The library should be safe.”

“Should be?” Felix mutters. He looks up, realization dawning on his face. “Wait, you bastards didn’t have a _plan_?” 

“We were going to like… kill Lowson and get Leehwa back?” Jisung supplies helpfully. Felix covers his face with his hands. 

_So this is what evil feels like_ , Hyunjin thinks, eyeing the shut doors and boarded up windows of the shops around them. It’s not quite as heavy as he thought it’d be; instead, it’s more of a sour film coating his tongue and skin, sinking slowly into his bones. 

“Guess people thought a hurricane was coming,” Jisung notes, swinging his baseball bat back and forth idly. “And I wouldn’t blame them, either.” His copper-coloured hair is almost greenish in this abnormal light, and his skin has a sickly tint to it. Everyone’s does. 

Changbin pulls out a screwdriver from his back pocket and fiddles around with the flimsy lock on the double library doors. The dull thud of the lock hitting the stone steps is unnervingly loud in the strange air around them. 

Thankfully, the library is empty, and six of them settle into a loose circle to talk. 

“So what’s the plan?” Chan says, knees drawn up to his chest. “Felix is right- we can’t just go in there gun’s a-blazing. We’ll die.” 

“We use somebody to lure it out,” Felix proposes, sliding a long, silver blade out from under his tunic. “And then I’ll kill it, and we can all go home and get some fucking sleep. Seungmin and I can’t stay for very long on this side of the Veil- it kills us.” 

Hyunjin glances up at Seungmin. The redheaded fae is visibly sweating and pale, and Felix doesn’t look much better. He remembers Oberon- _the human world will kill you, it will slowly poison you_ \- and shivers. 

“That’s a shitty plan,” Jisung grumbles. 

Felix shoots an unamused look in the younger teenager’s direction. “You have a better idea, squirrel-boy?” 

“Nope!” Jisung squeaks, eyeing the fae’s barely-concealed blade nervously. “Good idea. Great. Let’s go kill an incredibly evil, primordial being!”

Seungmin stands, swaying a little. “Let’s go.” 

Felix pulls Hyunjin aside and hands him something. “Here, take this. I don’t need two.” Hyunjin blinks down at the dagger resting flat in his hands before removing it from it’s leather sheath. It’s a pretty thing, inlaid with silver and ivory, with a wickedly sharp tip. The blade spans about a foot long, and it’s a lot heavier than it looks. 

“I don’t-,” Hyunjin starts. Felix cuts him off. “Just in case, okay? Take it.”

Hyunjin bites his lip and nods. “Thanks,” He mumbles, and Felix pats his shoulder, something a little sad in his eyes. 

“Come on, Unseelie boy. We have a duine cnàimh to kill.” 

The storm has worsened in the short period of time they’d been indoors- rain lashes against Hyunjin’s skin, needle-sharp and harsh, and the wind howls through the narrow alleyways and streets around them. 

Seungmin and Felix both retract their wings, pressing them close to the flats of their backs in a futile attempt to keep the feathers from getting soaked. 

“Lowson will be at the market,” Chan shouts over the din, squinting against the downpour. “He has an apartment on the second floor.” 

It’s both surprising and suspicious to see the market both open and running, the lights inside the store still on. Felix pushes open the door carefully, wincing as the little bell overhead jingles softly. 

The market is entirely empty, but not quiet- soft music plays from staticky speakers, and the buzzing of the refrigeration units tickle the insides of Hyunjin’s ears. They move from row to row as a group, peering around corners of packaged foods and bags of dry rice for their target. Jisung holds out his baseball bat, expression determined and ready. 

Felix peeks around a fruit stand and stiffens. _Here_ , he mouths, flapping his hand in the air to get the attention of the others. Not unlike a herd of clumsy puppies, the five other teenagers press up behind Felix to get a better look. 

Lowson is standing by the produce section, eyeing a wheel of cheese with great interest. The six teenagers all look at each other before sprinting towards the older man, their plan foiled by sheer collective rage. 

It’s Jisung who gets to Lowson first. Hyunjin watches in awe as the shorter teenager slams the baseball bat against the back of the man’s legs, sending him sprawling out onto the ground. “Take that, you fuck!” Jisung crows, planting the end of the bat squarely against the back of Lowson’s head. 

Felix strides over, blade drawn and expression stony. “Is this him?” The ginger asks, casting a level look over in Seungmin’s direction. 

_There’s something wrong_ , Hyunjin realizes, heart sinking. There’s no dark presence emanating from Lowson, no heavy sickness seeping out from the older man. _It’s not him_. He can’t say exactly _why_ , but the truth of it lies in the pit of his stomach. 

“Yes,” Seungmin replies, “But there’s something wrong. I can’t sense any-,” 

But Felix is already moving, something twisted and fierce and a little happy on his face. The blade swings towards Lowson’s neck, whistling slightly through the air. Something snaps inside of Hyunjin’s chest, and before he can process it, he’s between Felix and Lowson, one finger touching the vibrating blade lightly. 

Someone whistles lowly. 

“How did Hyunjin move that fast?” Jisung mutters. Chan shrugs. “I guess his fancy-schmancy Unseelie powers are waking up.” 

“It’s not him,” Hyunjin says softly. Something dark and velvet snakes fills the back of his throat, clogs his head. “I think we have the wrong guy.” 

Felix's’ eyes darken. “Do you really want to take that chance?” 

Hyunjin pushes the blade away, maintaining eye contact with the Seelie. Something warm runs up his wrist; he must have nicked himself on the sharp edge of the blade.

“I can _tell_ , Felix. There’s nothing inhuman about this man. There’s nothing dangerous. I’d be able to tell otherwise.” 

“Of course you would,” Felix murmurs. The fae lowers the blade, jaw tight. “You’re dangerous yourself, aren’t you?” 

Hyunjin flinches, stung, and that dark velvet slips away from him, takes him away from that strange place inside his own head. 

Seungmin steps forward. “ _Felix_ ,” He warns, his voice a razor blade. “ _Enough_.” 

The other fae just shakes his head. Lowson grunts beneath them, and everyone freezes. 

“What the fuck?” 

Jisung steps forward, baseball bat held high. “Want me to hit him again?” 

“No- fuck- don’t hit me again, I didn’t do anything.” Lowson sits up, glaring at Jisung. “That hurt, kid. You’re stronger than you look.” Jisung smirks and flexes his arms, much to Changbin’s amusement. 

“If it’s not you,” Hyunjin says sharply, helping the older man up, “Then who is the bone-man?”

“Oh, _Hyunjin_ ,” A familiar voice croons, sending shivers down the back of Hyunjin’s neck, “I can’t believe you didn’t catch on at all.” 

“Ah,” Chan says softly, “I should have known.” 

Aunt Leehwa stands in the dairy section, posture loose and easy. It’s not Leehwa, though, because she’s never looked at Hyunjin like that before-never looked at him like he was dog shit on the bottom of her shoe. She licks her lips, eyes cat-like, and Hyunjin reels. _It’s not Lowson. It’s_ Leehwa. 

How long had it been inside of Leehwa? How long had it been Leehwa? 

“On and off,” Not-Leehwa replies, her voice fluctuating between grating and clear, like two river rocks rubbing against each other, “But it wasn’t very hard to pretend to be her, you know. You really didn’t know her at all- it was so easy convincing you.” 

“You’re _evil_ ,” Hyunjin whispers, wiping angry tears away from the corners of his eyes. “Let her go. Please.” 

Not-Leehwa laughs, high and shrill. “If I’m evil, so are you. We started out the same, Hyunjin- I was a changeling too, many centuries ago. The human world was not kind to me- it warped me, having to deal with the caustic nature of mortals. When I was offered power, I took it.”

“You kill Seelie fae and _eat_ them.” 

“It was the Seelie that did this to me,” Not-Leehwa counters, slinking closer to where Hyunjin stands, frozen. “It was the Seelie that did this to you- they’ve always loved their little games. Even now, they lie to you.” 

“Don’t listen to it, Hyunjin!” Seungmin shouts, but Hyunjin can’t really hear it. It feels like he’s hearing everything from deep inside a wind tunnel, noises pinging off the walls of his head and scrambling his brain. 

Not-Leehwa leans in close, and Hyunjin is able to smell lingering perfume-cinnamon and sawdust, so reminiscent of home and Hyunjin can’t help but cry. “Your father- your true one, made you an offer, didn't he? That he’d tell you who your real mother was, if you’d only leave this town.” 

Gently, it strokes Hyunjin’s shoulder. “He would have given you the wrong name. But I’ll tell you who she was. You just have to ask.”

Seungmin yells something again, his voice overlapping with Chan and Jisung’s, but Hyunjin tunes it out. 

_You just have to ask_. 

_I wonder who the bitch is_. 

Something that is not him opens his mouth, forces his tongue to form syllables against the backs of his teeth and roof of his mouth. “What was her name?” 

Not-Leehwa smiles, all teeth. It’s not a nice smile. 

“Is, Hyunjin. Her name is Song Leehwa.” 

Hyunjin’s knees buckle. Distantly, he thinks he can hear someone yelling, but the blood rushing in his ears drowns it out. _It’s lying_ , he tells himself, tears blurring his vision. _It’s not her. It can’t be- it doesn’t make sense_ \- 

_But it does_ , a sly little voice says. _Haven’t you noticed how similarly you act? How you share the same mannerisms, the same laugh_? 

Not-Leehwa bends down beside him, and Hyunjin freezes, stuck in the limbo space between repulsion and love. 

“Give me permission to take what I need, and you can have her back. You’re an Unseelie prince; Hyunjin- your word is as good as law. Wouldn’t you like to get to know your mother? _Really_ get to know her? She cries about you often, you know. It’s pathetic.” 

“Shut up,” Hyunjin cries, weakly trying to push Not-Leehwa away. “Shut _up_.” 

“Just say yes, Hyunjin. That’s all you have to do.” The bone-man's voice is wheedling, convincing, coated in Leehwa’s voice and layers of honey. 

For one long, aching moment, Hyunjin almost says it, almost allows the words to escape past his lips, unbidden and slick. It’s not Leehwa looking at him, speaking to him, but it looks like her, and Hyunjin wants to hug her. 

Hyunjin wants to hug his mother. 

Instead, a word tumbles from his mouth, hitting the floor of the market with the precision of a bullet. 

“No.” 

Not-Leehwa stills. “What?” 

“No,” Hyunjin says, voice a little stronger. He stands up. “You’ll take nothing from this town.” That dark velvet is back again, coating his insides, filling his lungs up with black smoke and something that feels like electricity. 

Something unholy and vile twists his aunt’s- _his mother’s_ \- features, rendering her barely unrecognizable. “Very well,” the bone-man says, teeth elongating, skin drooping like melted crayon wax, “Then I’ll just have to make you.” 

“Don’t hurt Leehwa,” warns Hyunjin , feeling his own teeth sharpen and shift, feeling his own form bubble and shift. “I’ll kill you.” 

The bone-man tilts its head. “Who said I was going to kill her?” 

Before Hyunjin can process the words, Not-Leehwa is streaking past him in a whirl of silver hair and skin, hand outstretched towards something- 

-towards Felix, who steps to the side, his expression one of surprise. 

Hyunjin lets loose a sigh of relief. _It missed_. Across the room, someone sobs, and Hyunjin twists to see Jisung and Changbin with twin expressions of revulsion. 

“Oh, fuck,” Jisung whimpers. “Oh my god.” 

“You can’t really see it,” Not-Leehwa says conversationally, and Hyunjin stiffens. “But I’m holding his heart in my hand. I could just- _crush_ it, if I wanted to.” 

Seungmin makes a strangled choking noise, his body twitching, gaze turned downwards towards the hand that is buried inside his chest. Hyunjin sucks in a sharp breath, and Not-Leehwa turns to him, a sly smile on its face. 

“All you have to do is say yes, and I’ll let him go. I won’t even take him- there are other fae children well within my grasp.” 

“Don’t do it,” Felix says quietly. His face is pale and his eyes are glazed with tears, but the fae looks at Hyunjin steadily. “Hyujin, don’t let it win. There’s too much at stake.” 

“You’re his bodyguard, aren’t you?” Not-Leehwa asks, bemused. “Not a very good one, obviously.” Felix snarls, low and wordless. 

“Seungmin,” Hyunjin whispers. The redhead lifts his head to meet Hyunjin’s horror-stricken face, expression distant and twisted with pain. 

Seungmin shakes his head, a silent _No_ , and Hyunjin breaks, splintering into a thousand glittering pieces. 

Not-Leehwa smiles a funny little smile, eyes confused and tone condescending. “You know we can’t love, Hyunjin. Changelings can’t love.” 

“ _I_. can,” Hyunjin breathes, eyes locked on Seungmin’s face. “I _do_..” 

The corners of Seungmin’s lips curl up at that, and his eyes shine with the light of a thousand stars. 

“What a funny little kite you are,” The bone-man remarks. “I’ll save you for last.” It squeezes, hard, and Seungmin crumples like paper in the wind, mouth frozen in an o. 

Chan yells, and Changbin curses, and Felix leaps towards the bone-man, blade drawn. In response, Not-Leehwa laughs and rocks back on its legs, anticipating a fight. Hyunjin, however, is silent: a breath of wind. He runs over to where Seungmin lies on the ground, crumpled and so, so small. 

“Hey,” Hyunjin chokes out, shaking Seungmin’s shoulder lightly, ignoring the fat tears dripping down the bridge of his nose. “Hey, Seungmin. Seungmin?” 

The fae prince says nothing, his eyelashes resting on the slope of his upper cheek. Hyunjin covers the hole in his chest, shudders at the red that seeps through the cracks in his fingers. _He’s Seelie_ , Hyunjin thinks, desperately clinging to something, anything that will assuage his fears. _He’ll live_. 

All Hyunjin can think about is how he needs to tell Seungmin how he feels about him. Seungmin, who has been nothing but a bright light to Hyunjin, is fading away underneath Hyunjin’s hands like sand through an hourglass.

Seungmin’s fingers twitch against Hyunjin’s palm. 

“Oh my god, you’re alive. Thank god, Seungmin, I need to tell you something-,” 

Seungmin cuts him off. “-omise.” 

“What?” Hyunjin says, leaning in until the tips of their noses nearly touch. 

“Promise,” Seungmin exhales, feather-light and as thin as gossamer. He taps Hyunjin’s palm once, and then falls silent, the first syllable of of some word frozen on his lips. 

Hyunjin stares down at Seungmin, and Seungmin stares back. 

_Promise_. 

Seungmin isn’t breathing. He isn’t breathing, and his heart isn’t beating. Hyunjin raises a shaky hand to his mouth, a strange kind of numbness weighing his limbs down. 

“Oh,” Somebody says from behind him- probably Chan. “He’s not-,” 

“He’s not breathing,” Hyunjin says tonelessly. _Promise_. What had Seungmin meant by that? 

There are people crowding around them now, voices sharp and shrill with panice, but Hyunjin is following a breadcrumb trail of nostalgia back into the dusty archive of his memories, focusing on the faint taste of something sharp and sweet on his tongue. 

Something tickles the back of his brain, tugging him towards an old, old memory. Sour cherry bursts on his tongue, soaks into his skin, and there’s that shadow person again, with their soft skin and ever softer laughter-

-and Seungmin’s not breathing, his heart’s not beating, so Hyunjin falls into the taste of cherries and cut grass, falling down down down into that foggy half-light. 

( From across the Other, Oberon staggers backwards, sliding ungracefully onto his throne. 

“My lord? Is something the matter?” His servant asks tentatively, placing a careful hand on Oberon’s robe. “Yes,” Oberon murmurs, eyes far away. “My son is dead.” 

With a shuddering sigh, the Seelie king begins to cry for the first time in almost two centuries. ) 

***

_Hyunjin is awoken by something knocking at his window. For a moment, he thinks that it must be the touch of an errant tree branch, but then there’s another knock-knock-knock and Hyunjin knows it’s deliberate. He creeps towards the window, raggedy teddy bear clutched tightly to his chest_.

“ _Oh,” Hyunjin says softly, relaxing a little bit. “It’s just you.” He wants to be mad at the strange boy for all the panic he’d caused earlier, but he can’t seem to muster any irritation up- it’s long gone, now_. 

Let me in, _Seungmin mouths, eyes wide and pleading. The redhead looks over his shoulder nervously, like he’s expecting somebody to be following. Hyunjin’s fingers hesitate over the windowsill before clumsily unlocking the window, probably against his better judgement. The other boy clambers into his bedroom, eyes wide and chest heaving_.

“ _I’ve never snuck out at night before,” Seungmin confesses, sitting up and taking a look around the mostly bare room. “Is this your sleep-place_?” 

“ _Just for this summer,” Hyunjin replies, placing his teddy down onto the bed. “This is my auntie’s house- me and my mom are visiting because my daddy made her angry._ ” 

_Seungmin rubs his hands against the carpeted floor. “What did he do? Eat somebody_?” 

_Hyunjin giggles at that, and Seungmin stares at him, mouth agape, cheeks red. “No, silly.” He frowns, sobering up a little. “At least, I don’t think so. Mommy won’t tell me- she says it’s a grown-up thing_.” 

_Seungmin nods sagely. “I get it. Grown-ups are weird and boring. I like being a kid much more_.” 

“ _Me too,” Hyunjin sighs, thinking about all the yelling and fighting and nights spent hiding in his closet with his little radio turned all the way up. “Me too.” Seungmin shuffles a little closer to him and smiles shyly, and Hyunjin scrunches his nose at the fluttery feeling that blooms in his chest._.

“ _Oh yeah! Why are you here, anyways_?” 

_Seungmin picks at a hangnail. “I just… wanted to say sorry, for causing all that trouble. I didn’t realize that it would freak your mom out so much- where I live, people do that kind of stuff all the time_..” 

“ _People turn into ghosts all the time_?” 

“ _You weren’t a ghost, you were just.. Out,” Seungmin mutters lamely. “You’re like me, I can tell- you wouldn’t have died_.” 

_Hyunjin looks at the other boy then, really looks at him. The moonlight from the open window cuts across his round features, soaks his hair in silver and white. There’s a strange, reflective quality to his eyes, something that glints in the dim light. He’s nothing like Hyunjin, but at the same time, there’s something. There’s something about Seungmin that Hyunjin can’t quite put a finger on_. 

“ _How on earth are we alike?” Hyunjin queries, rubbing his heavy eyes with one hand. Seungmin shrugs_. 

“ _Both of our families can be dumb, I guess. And you’re-,” The boy gestures to himself, to his wings- “You’re like me.” There’s a heavy emphasis on the like, and Hyunjin can feel his eyebrow quirking_. 

“ _Are you saying I’m a magick-magical person_?” 

_Seungmin looks out the window, the barest shadow of fear passing over his face. “Yeah,” he whispers, “Yeah. Not exactly like me, but- close enough. Your mom never should have brought you here- you’re not safe_.” 

“ _How am I not safe_?” 

_Seungmin says nothing_. 

_Hyunjin swallows. He doesn’t like this, not one bit. There’s something tugging at his gut, telling him to run out the door to his mommy’s room and crawl under the sheets next to her. He wants to smell her perfumed hair and listen to the steady rise and fall of her breaths as she sleeps, deep and easy_.

Run, _a voice hisses in the corner of his mind_ , run away!

_He doesn’t. Instead, he repeats his question_. 

“ _Seungmin- how am I not safe_?” 

“ _I can’t tell you, okay? Knowing will just put you in more danger.” The redhead bites his lip and hesitates. “But maybe I can- I can protect you instead.” Seungmin takes a deep breath. “Can you keep your promises_?” 

_Hyunjin nods jerkily. ‘Promises are important_.” 

“ _Yeah,” Seungmin breathes, and Hyunjin can see something like stars in his eyes when he looks up. “They’re what keeps us alive_.” 

_Seungmin holds out his hand. Hyunjin stares at it blankly before reaching out to take it. The other boys’ hand is warm and soft and sends something like static racing up his arm, fizzy and light, like the bubbles that tickle the back of his throat when he drinks cola too fast_. 

“ _Let’s make a promise,” Seungmin says, expression earnest and tone serious, “I’ll protect you and keep you safe, and in turn you’ll remember me, even when you leave. Even when you grow up._ ” 

_What a weirdo, Hyunjin thinks. He nods anyway, because suddenly he can smell cherries and freshly cut grass, and Seungmin’s hand is a live wire against his_.

“ _You have to say it back,” Seungmin orders. “Otherwise it won’t be a true promise._.” 

“ _I-I promise,” Hyunjin mumbles, feeling a little bit overwhelmed. “I promise that I’ll remember you_.” 

“ _And I promise to keep you safe,” Seungmin replies, and something blossoms between their hands, slipping out the cracks between their fingers like sand and falling noiselessly to the ground. Hyunjin can taste cherries on the tip of his tongue. Seungmin leans in and whispers something soft and strange into his ear and then- he’s gone_. 

_Hyunjin stares out the window, and then down at his tingling palms. “Weird,” He whispers, reaching up to shut the windows again, the encounter already fading away into the recesses of his mind. “That was really weird_.” 

Except it’s not weird anymore, because Hyunjin knows what it is. What it means. 

Cherries and cut grass and static- Seungmin’s true name, his real name. 

“Don’t you forget,” He sobs, clutching the redhead’s limp hand, “That we made a promise. You still need to keep me safe. I need to keep you safe. Please, _please_ come back, Seungmin.” 

Hyunjin presses his lips to the soft shell of Seungmin’s ear. “Come back.” 

In the corner of a supermarket, among a group of teenage boys fighting something awful and disturbed, there is a pocket of spring. Inside that spring, there is a world, quiet and sacred and powerful, and Hyunjin is the only one who knows it. Hyunjin whispers it to Seungmin, reminds Seungmin of who he is, and who he will be. 

He speaks of hazy childhood memories, and the fragile stirrings of first love. Light falls off of his tongue in thick drops, cold and familiar and bright, soaking into the fabric of Seungmin’s shredded tunic. 

Hyunjin tells Seungmin his name. 

The subsequent white flare of light causes everybody in the market to freeze in their tracks. Something bright and transcendent flows between their joined hands, blooming upwards in a strange, slow imitation of a flower unfurling. 

“The fuck is that?” Jisung hisses, raising his baseball bat warily. Changbin flicks him on the shoulder. “Dumbass. That’s a soul pact.”

Jisung glares at Changbin. “And? What the fuck is that?” 

The half-dwarf sniggers. “Fae are big on promises, right? Fae promises bind tighter than superglue. When two soul-compatible people make a promise… well, it turns into something more. Something divine.” 

Chan sidles over to them, one eye on Felix, who’s still engaged in battle with the duine cnàimh. “How did you know all that?” 

Changbin sighs. “Because I actually paid attention to the stuff our parents taught us.” He hesitates. “And Lowson.” 

Jisung shoots a disdainful look in the older man’s direction. “Oh. Him.” 

Lowson raises a bushy eyebrow. “You beat me up with a baseball bat, kid. _I’m_ the one who should be mad at _you_.” 

“Shut up,” Chan hisses. “Something is happening.” 

( Something changes.) 

Hyunjin leans in, achingly soft, and kisses Seungmin’s cold lips, passing that strange white light from his mouth to Seungmin’s, pouring it into him like water into an empty vase. 

It’s something straight out a fairytale, the way Seungmin’s eyelashes flutter open at the contact. The fae surges forward, cradling Hyunjin’s face with one hand while the other snakes around to rest at Hyunjin’s hip. 

_Oh_., Hyunjin thinks, _I didn’t think it could be like this_.

This isn’t Hyunjin’s first kiss- far from it, actually. There were plenty of girls, and a few boys. But they were nothing like Seungmin; all of Hyunjin’s past endeavors pale in comparison to the way Seungmin melts under him, warm and soft. They’re both sticky with blood and sweat, but Hyunjin doesn’t care. 

He pulls Seungmin tight against him, kiss hungry and saccharine sweet. Birdsong thrums through his blood, sings in his ears, pulls at his shoulders. This moment is high and clear and endless. Seungmin tastes like cherries and nutmeg and the forest. He tastes like home. 

“I am so glad you’re not dead,” Hyunjin mumbles between kisses, giggling a little when Seungmin presses a soft kiss to the tip of his nose. 

“Fae can’t break promises, _I told_ you.” Seungmin grins. He still looks pale and weary, but he’s alive, and that’s all that really matters. “Not even having my heart crushed can keep me away.”

Hyunjin grabs Seungmin’s shoulders. “Look. There’s something I have to tell you. From the moment I laid eyes on you, I’ve been entirely and utterly in l-,”

Felix curses loudly. “Hyunjin! Incoming!” 

Alarmed, Hyunjin looks up to see the bone-man lurching towards him, tongue lolling and teeth bared. Leehwa is still in there- Hyunijn knows it in the same way that he knew Lowson was not the monster. 

Leehwa is _in there_ , but Hyunjin still stands and draws his borrowed blade, legs heavy. That soft velvet static lends him strength, gives him the clarity to roll out of the way of the boneman’s claws. 

“Idiot boy,” Not-Leehwa snarls, saliva dripping from its maw, “All you had to do was say yes. I could have led you down a path to power.” 

“I don’t want power,” Hyunjin says tightly, whirling to avoid getting his head bit off, “I want you to shut the fuck up.” _And I want my mother back_.. 

The blade sings in his hand and moves for him, cutting through the air effortlessly towards the bone-man’s head. Hyunjin twists his arm at the last possible second, and instead of decapitating Not-Leehwa, he impales it instead, the dagger spearing the creature right below the ribcage. 

“Got you,” Hyunjin pants, adrenaline coursing through his body. The bone-man smiles and echoes him. 

 

“Got you.” 

As if moving through syrup, Hyunjin looks down. There’s a hole in his stomach. 

“Fuck me,” Hyunjin says faintly, and passes out. 

***

( _He doesn’t dream this time_.. )

***  
“-a moment, please. I’d like to speak with him.” 

Hyunjin blinks. He’s in a room of some kind- a _hospital_., he realizes, staring at the IV stand adjacent to his bed until it comes into focus. Aside from feeling like his head and tongue are made entirely out of cotton, he feels okay. 

A round-faced, kind looking nurse smiles down at him. “Hello, Mr. Hwang. You must be pretty disoriented right now!” 

“Not really,” Hyunjin mumbles, wondering why hospitals were painted in such a painful shade of white. 

The nurse beams at him. “You were hurt in the hurricane- you’ve been sedated and out for three days to make sure you could heal up.” 

_I guess the locals bought the hurricane story_. 

“Where’s my m- my aunt?” Hyunjin asks, tripping over his words. The nurse looks towards the door, smile faltering slightly. “She’s going to be okay. If you’ll excuse me- it looks like somebody’s here to see you.” 

“Thank you. I’ll only be a minute- I can’t stay long.” 

Hyunjin sits up, arms feeling like limp noodles. “I definitely wasn't expecting you. No offence.” 

Oberon smiles thinly. “Neither would I.” The Seelie king is dressed in a sharp grey suit- if it weren’t for the horns, the fae would look like any other businessman or banker. 

“I think,” The Seelie king starts, mouth puckered as though he’d just bit into a lemon, “I owe you an apology.” 

Hyunjin raises his eyebrows. Oberon pulls at his tie, loosening it. There’s a thin sheen of sweat on his face already- the fae really hadn’t been exaggerating about being unable to be in the mortal world for long. 

“The way I spoke to you was… unkind. Truth be told, it does not matter so much to me that you are Unseelie, or that my son is enamoured with you despite it. What initially made me wary of you was the way you looked at him- like he was the sun, and you the planet in orbit of it.” Oberon takes a breath. 

“It reminded me of the way I used to look at my wife.” 

Hyunjin picks at the loose threads on his pajama pants, feeling incredibly awkward. _I was not expecting the conversation to head in this direction_.

“You see, we too made a promise- one so strong that it was only possible due to the compatibility of our core selves. We were _anam cara_.” 

“ _Anam cara_ ,” Hyunjin repeats. 

“Soulmates,” Oberon translates, some of the tension leaking out of his expression. “That’s what we were. That’s what you and my son are.” 

It’s not surprising. Coals glow deep in Hyunjin’s chest with the promise of fire. “I know,” Hyunjin says. “Even before I knew Seungmin, I could tell. Even though I didn’t have a name for it.” 

Oberon rocks back on his feet like he’d been expecting a punch. “I see.” He looks towards the hospital door. “My wife broke her promise, you see, and it killed her. Do not make the same mistake that she did.” 

“I won’t,” Hyunjin says, feeling pity for the shadow of the man in front of him. “I swear on it.” Oberon holds his gaze, searching for something- what it is, Hyunjin will probably never know- and eventually, the Seelie king nods. 

“I believe you.” He straightens up. “My son would be here instead of me, were his wounds not so severe. He will be back, in time.” 

“My time, or your time?” 

There’s a solemnity in Oberon’s eyes. “I cannot say which.” 

Something twists in Hyunjin’s chest, rough and knife-sharp. Time works differently in the Other; for all Hyunjin knows, Seungmin could be back tomorrow, right as rain. _Or he might never come back, a little voice murmurs, or you could be eighty and half a country away._

_Shut up_ , Hyunjin thinks, _it’ll be fine_. 

Hyunjin nods, and Oberon leaves, leaving no trace that he had ever been there in the first place. 

The nurse returns- ABIGAIL :) her name tag says- looking slightly disoriented. “Your parents are waiting outside,” She says, peering down at him, brows knit together. “Are you feeling okay? You look a little ill.” 

“I’m fine,” Hyunjin says, and he is. Everyone is alive- he really has nothing to complain about. _I can wait for Seungmin as long as it takes._ “Tell Leehwa to come in.” 

ABIGAIL blinks. “Your aunt is going to need to stay in bed for a little while longer, I’m afraid.” 

“Ah,” Hyunjin says, “Hi.” 

Hyunjin’s mother- not-mother, whatever- rushes into the room, eyes watery and lower lip wobbling. Her usually perfect makeup is smeared and running, and her hair has long since fallen out of its neat bun. “I was so _worried_!” Hyunjin inhales as she hugs him, smells the perfume she always wears, lavender and lemon, and embraces her back. It’s a little strange, knowing that she’s not really his mother, has never been his mother, but he appreciates her for trying, loves her for doing her best. 

“I’m okay,” Hyunjin says quietly. “I’m going to be okay, mom.” He peers towards the door over her shoulder. “Is dad here?” 

She sniffs, the tip of her nose red. “No. He had a _business opportunity_ that came in at the last minute.” 

_Railing a perky blonde, probably._ Hyunjin shrugs. “Fine by me. He’s an asshole, you know. You should divorce him- I really wouldn’t mind.” 

“Hyunjin!” His mother says, scandalized, but there’s a besmused glint in her gaze. 

Hyunjin taps the metal pole of the IV stand. “It’s the drugs talking, not me.” 

“On a more serious note,” his mother says, reaching out to take one of his gauze-wrapped hands, “I’d like to take you back home now. There’s only a week left of summer, and your aunt is in no position to be able to take care of you, let alone herself.” 

Panic surges through Hyunjin, crashing against the shore of his mind like waves. “No- no, I want to stay here, mom. I’ve been thinking- there’s a university a couple miles away, I’ve made good friends here. I don’t want to go back to Pennsylvania.” 

His mother looks at him contemplatively. “Here’s the deal. You come back to Pennsylvania, finish your senior year, and you can come back for good when you’re done.” She reaches over to stroke his cheek, her eyes gentle. 

“I can see that this place has been good to you, darling.” She pauses. “Except for, well, the hurricane, but that really wasn’t your doing.” 

Hyunjin wisely chooses not to comment on that.

**

The town boys and Leehwa come to see Hyunjin off. The airport is the same as Hyunjin remembers it- small, clean, tidy. Chan wheels Leehwa over, smiling lopsidedly. “Hey, don’t look so down. You’ll be back soon enough- a year isn’t very long.” 

“I know,” Hyunjin whispers, tears welling up in his eyes, “But it sure feels like it.” 

Chan laughs and pulls him into a tight, woodsy hug, and Jisung and Changbin join in, the four of them standing still in the middle of a bustling airport, friends. 

“It’s not like you’re going off to _war_ ,” Jisung mock sobs, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, “It’s just Pennsylvania.” 

“It might as well be a war,” Changbin adds. The shorter boy yelps as both Jisung and Chan reach over to punch his shoulder. 

“You guys have to write, okay? Or call. I’m going to lose my fucking mind if you don’t.”

Chan salutes. “You have my word.” 

Hyunjin bends down, looking Leehwa straight in the eye. “You have a lot of explaining to do.” 

Leehwa sighs, her eyes shiny with unshed tears. “Oh, I know. Don’t worry- you can expect a lot of phone calls from me.” Hyunjin hugs her gently painfully aware of the stitches underneath her loose clothing. 

“It’s only a year,” She says, scrubbing at her face, and Hyunjin nods. “One year.” 

Three hundred and sixty-five days- 525600 minutes. It’s a long time, when you have people you love that you want to go back to, when you’re leaving a place that feels like home. “Give SM a pet for me, okay?” 

Leehwa gives him a watery smile. “I can do that. I’m guessing that you want me to pass your mixtape over to loverboy once he gets back?” 

Hyunjin flushes. “Not so loud!” 

Jisung snickers. “You made Seungmin a fucking _mixtape_ … I wonder how many ABBA songs are on there.” 

“It’s probably all ABBA songs,” Chan counters, and they all laugh, a little teary-eyed, before Hyunjin’s mom trots up with the plane tickets and passports. “Honey, we need to go now.” 

“You take care of him, Alice,” Leehwa says, and Hyunjin’s mother bends down to kiss her forehead. “You know I will.” 

As they pass through the security gates, Hyunjin takes one look back at the odd, rag-tag group of people that he’s come to consider his family. _What a strange, awful, lovely summer._ There’s birdsong in Hyunjin’s bones; he can feel it now, aware of its presence as much as one is of another person. 

Penn has changed him- this summer has changed him. 

Hyunjin buckles himself into his seat silently and watches the runway pull up from underneath him, taking him away. His mother leans over, face concerned. “Is something wrong?” 

“Nothing is wrong,” Hyunjin whispers through numb lips, reaching into his bag to run a thumb over the long, glossy red feather tucked inside. “I just really wanted to stay.” 

As the plane tilts upwards into the sky, simultaneously towards and away from home, Hyunjin hears the birdsong, and he can taste the sour-sweet tang of cherries on his tongue. He’s leaving, but not gone for good. 

_I’ll be back_ , Hyunjin promises, and as we all know, promises made by fae are always kept. 

**

Sometime in The Other, Seungmin wakes up, the taste of blackberries and cut wood in his mouth. He sits straight up, gasping for air, his chest aching. The Seelie king is standing over him, face blank. 

“He’s gone,” Oberon says, answering his unspoken question, “But he’ll be back, in a year of his time.” 

_How long have I been sleeping, though_? 

Seungmin swings his legs over the side of the moss-covered bed, and brushes the cobwebs off his clothes. “Is everyone alive?” 

Oberon sighs and hands his son a strange, plasticky rectangle. “Yes. All the stinky little mortals are alive and kicking- one of them gave me this. I have no idea as to what it is.” 

Seungmin cradles the cassette tape in his hands, a sad little smile on his face. “I do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy birthday, hyunjin!!!!
> 
> epilogue up tomorrow <3
> 
> ps. thank u for reading <3  
> pps. twt @ MlR0H


	7. epilogue ( a kite without strings )

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyunjin comes home.

Hyunjin steps off the plane, a heavy camera in one hand and a full heart in the other. “I’m back,” He whispers to Penn, smiling a little as the trees lining the field around the runway bend inwards, greeting him. 

It’s been a long year, but Hyunjin is back for good- forever, maybe. There’s a little university a couple miles north of town, and it has a small but thriving photography program. It’s a strange coincidence, but he’ll take it. 

( _“Still nothing?” Hyunjin asks one cold November day after class, holding onto the phone like it’s his lifeline. Leehwa sighs through the phone, crackly and tired. “I check every day, kiddo, and so far there’s been no sign of him_.” 

_So Hyunjin nods, and Hyunjin watches swollen rain clouds scud across the grey, Pennsylvania sky, and he waits_. )

He scans the baggage carousel for Leehwa and her colourful clothing, but she’s nowhere to be found. The airport is different but still the same; a new coffee stand is over by the exit, and a painting of the mountains outside decorates one of the far walls. 

“Hyunjin?” 

He turns, birdsong in his bones. Seungmin stands on the other side of the baggage claim, bundled up in a thick black sweater and loose, frayed jeans. He’s barefoot, his hair windswept and careless. The people around him stare as he shouts Hyunjin’s name again, a smile breaking out onto his face like waves against the shore. 

Something _changes_ in the air, the scent of cherries and blackberries and fresh air, and Hyunjin claps a hand over his mouth in an attempt to hold back the swelling tide of emotion. He takes a slow step forward, legs shaky, and-

And-

“Seungmin,” Hyunjin breathes, and then they’re both running, pushing through the crowd of people, tripping over their own feet. They slam into each other, and Hyunjin nearly sobs at the solid, firm contact. 

“Hey, _leannan_ ,” Seungmin says softly, eyes shining with a hundred thousand stars, “Guess I woke up at the right time after all.” 

Hyunjin reaches up to cup Seungmin’s cheeks with his hands. “Guess you did. Did you like my mixtape?”

“I _loved_ it,” Seungmin murmurs, the birdsong around them so loud it nearly drowns out his voice, and then he pulls Hyunjin into a long, slow kiss, all honey and sticky-sweet summer heat. Hyunjin drops his luggage to lean into the kiss, not caring one bit about the stares they’re getting. 

This summer will be the second summer with Seungmin and Leehwa and the town boys, but it will be the first one where he stays. This summer will be the first one where he will call Leehwa _mother_ and make kites with the town boys that will dance on the grassy hillsides. He doesn’t know it, yet, but he will spend many, many hazy summer days picking blackberries with Seungmin and kissing the juice off of his lips, so easy and _right_. 

“Come on,” Seungmin says between kisses, breathless, “We have to go- there's a car waiting outside.” 

“What?” Hyunjin says thickly, perfectly willing to just stand there and kiss Seungmin all day, but the Seelie prince just laughs and pulls Hyunjin along, strides long and easy. 

**  
Leehwa pats SM’s head affectionately. “You can feel it too, can’t you?” 

_Yes_ , the cat says, tail twitching a little against Leehwa’s leg, _He’s come home_. 

“I’ve never been a mother before,” Leehwa confides to the other two cats in the living room. “I’m a little bit afraid, to be honest.” 

YG rolls his eyes. _You’ll be fine. You’re excellent at most things you do, after all. The child loves you; there’s no need to worry_.” 

“Leehwa!” Changbin calls from the kitchen, voice slightly panicked, “Is the oven supposed to be making these noises?” 

“Obviously _not_ , dumbass,” Jisung calls back from his spot by the open window, eyes glimmering amusedly. Leehwa clucks her tongue at him and stands up slowly- she’s a little bit stiffer these days, after everything that happened _last_ summer- and makes her way to the kitchen. She bites back a little laugh at the sight of Changbin in a red and white patterned apron, flour on the counter and the floor and in his hands. 

“I think I messed it up,” The shorter man proclaims, a tiny frown on his face. Leehwa bends down and opens the oven, coughing at the plume of smoke that wafts out and hits her in the face. 

“It’s a little, er, singed, but it should taste just fine,” Leewha promises, making sure to slip on a pair of worn oven mitts before taking out the smoking pie and settling it on the rack to cool. Changbin shoots a smug look over at Jisung, who’s made his way into the kitchen. “Told you.” 

The younger boy, who’s sporting freshly dyed blue hair, rolls his eyes. “Chan just texted me- they’re on their way back now.” 

Leehwa straightens up and nods, surveying the inside of the house. _It’ll do. Hyunjin liked it enough the last time he was here_. SM snakes around her ankles, soft and comforting. _Don’t be nervous, silly woman_. 

_Agreed_ , Leehwa replies. She waves a hand at the two town boys. “Could the two of you go and light the candles?” 

**

Chan and Felix are waiting for them in a suspiciously familiar Jeep. “Hi,” Chan says, giving him a crooked smile from his spot behind the wheel, “Long time no see.” 

“I missed you guys,” Hyunjin confesses, chest warm and feet light as he and Seungmin shove the luggage in the trunk of the Jeep. “Like, a lot.” 

“Hey,” Felix adds, giving Hyunjin a friendly punch on the shoulder as he clambers into the backseat, “You got a lot taller! Soon you’ll be able to look down at Seungmin.” 

“I really doubt that,” Seungmin says drily. Chan twists the keys, and the Jeep lurches to life unsteadily, the engine coughing and shuddering around them. “Did you tell Hyunjin yet?” 

Hyunjin narrows his eyes. “Tell me what?” 

Chan laughs nervously, eyes fixed straight on the road as he backs out of the parking stall. “Tell him what?” 

“Me and Chan are fucking,” Felix says easily, a little grin pulling at the sides of his mouth. “Like, all the time.” 

“What?” Hyunjin yelps. “How? I thought the two of you hated each other.” Felix shrugs. His hair is a little longer now, the auburn locks curling just under his ears. “You know what they say- there’s a fine line between love and hate.” 

“We mostly just have a lot of hate sex, though,” Chan admits. Felix snickers as Hyunjin mimes vomiting out of the window. 

Seungmin rolls his eyes and reaches over to grab Hyunjin’s hand. “You two are disgusting- you really were made for each other.” 

“Yeah, well, not everybody can have a soppy fairytale romance like you two,” Chan retorts lightly, fingers loose on the steering wheel. “We just take what we can get.” 

Hyunjin and Seungmin exchange an amused look, because really, what can you even say to that? 

The trees lining the sides of the brown dirt road wave excitedly in the breeze, almost as though they’re welcoming the other fae prince back home. The early summer sun breaks through the fat, fluffy clouds overhead, illuminating the edges of the mountains and trees in the distance. 

Hyunjin closes his eyes, welcoming the warmth of the sun on his face and the warmth of Seungmin’s hand in his, and smiles. 

_(Later, Hyunjin will walk through the door and get attacked by his mother and Jisung and Changbin and three cats. Hyunjin will call Leehwa ‘mother’, and she’ll laugh at him through tears. They'll all laugh and cry and have dinner, and then he and Seungmin will slip out to the meadow behind the house and lie in the sweet grass there._

_Maybe, if Hyunjin listens close, he’ll be able to hear Seungmin whisper ‘I love you’, and if he closes his eyes and listens even closer, he’ll be able to hear Penn saying ‘Welcome home’, and it will feel so, so right_. 

_It will feel like Hyunjin has somewhere he finally belongs_. ) 

**  
“You do,” Seungmin says. “You belong here, with us.” The redhead pauses, and when he speaks, his cheeks flush a bright red. “You belong with me.’ Hyunjin stares at him, shocked by the truth in his voice, and laughs, laughs so hard that his sides ache.

Carefully, joyfully, he pulls Seungmin into another kiss, taking it slow and easy- because Hyunjin has all summer, he has the rest of his life to just stay here like this.

Hyunjin, in every sense of the word, is finally _home_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so! i'm a little sad to finish this, honestly, but i'm also a little bit proud, because this is the first chaptered thing i've ever completed. 
> 
> i started writing this back in november because i was depressed and everything was grey and i wanted summer, and now summer is almost here and i'm doing much better. writing is a form of free therapy and writing this made me so happy. thank you so, so much for reading this and loving it and commenting the most beautiful things. i try to reply to your comments but sometimes i just leave them in my inbox so i can read them again and again. 
> 
> again: i love you, and thank you for coming on this ride with me <3
> 
> ( come say hi! im on twt @ MlR0H ! if u want to check out my new seungbin chaptered fic, do that too! )
> 
> (ps. hyunjin's little mixtape to seungmin is here: https://open.spotify.com/user/forestquartz/playlist/5hqaIYwa3lsQnkvfmdDe4H?si=vv1yypikTxW0XgfwP-FIuA )


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